


Where it All Fell Apart

by DaisytheDoodleDog



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: A lot of pain, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Anxiety, F/M, Getting Together, Haikyuu Angst Week 2020, KageHina - Freeform, Karasuno Family, Kuroken (if you squint), M/M, Minor Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi, NO character deaths, PTSD, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, daisuga - Freeform, earthquake, the author did 0 research, the author had a chat with satan tho, you're gonna wanna hold onto that tag for your life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-01
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:54:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 35,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27294505
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DaisytheDoodleDog/pseuds/DaisytheDoodleDog
Summary: After winning a competition to attend an upscale training camp in Tokyo, both Nekoma and Karasuno attend with the hopes of exploring the hotel and beaches on the coast. Oh but, of course, the earth has other plans and it doesn't take long for the foundation that holds their volleyball court together to crumble, becoming one of many victims to the ruins. A long-winded earthquake AU that doesn't fit the timeline and has a lot of ships.
Relationships: Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou, Hinata Shouyou/Kageyama Tobio, Kozume Kenma/Kuroo Tetsurou, Sawamura Daichi/Sugawara Koushi, Shimizu Kiyoko/Tanaka Ryuunosuke
Comments: 28
Kudos: 147





	1. A T-rex in Tokyo

**Author's Note:**

> What's up my dudes?! So I was told its Haikyuu angst week so naturally, I had to contribute! This is my first Haikyuu fic, although I've been around the block many many times with this whole fanfiction gig. Here's my little earthquake story where everyone is about to be scarred for life!
> 
> Slight TW of Anxiety and PTSD
> 
> Heads up, I did no research for this, it was all just in good fun! The only real truth to the story is the PTSD and anxiety in here as I took a psychology class and the information comes from there. If anything is really wrong, from a ptsd symptom even to the way their names are written, please let me know so I change it!
> 
> Thank you all so much for reading!!!

**Chapter 1- A T-Rex in Tokyo**

Hinata watched the wall crumble down on him in slow motion. He should have moved, he should have run with the same determination and power as he held when he was on the court chasing after the ball. He should have run, but his legs were stuck, feet melded with the floor, breath trapped in his throat. The violent tremors of the foundation beneath his shoes was enough to knock him off balance, but he was paralyzed, watching the concrete wall, tall and strong, give way, plummeting towards him.

He was going to die. He couldn’t process the thought or anything past the slow motion of the falling wall and he silently cursed himself for not moving, but the screams of people and shattering of windows had been tuned out and it was only him and the concrete wall towering over him, ready to destroy him.

“HINATA!” Hinata was knocked back to his senses for just a fraction of a second, his eyes bouncing back from the wall towards the figure screaming for him. The sound of his own name wasn’t surprising, it was comforting in reality. He had heard his name being called like that from that exact same voice a hundred times before, normally just milliseconds before his feet left the ground and he was flying, free, and in his element. He had heard his name at the exact moment the ball touched his fingertips and view of the submit made him grin, just before his hand throbbed with the sheer force of his hit. It was the best feeling, but in retrospect, it was the sound of his name that gave him the thrill, sent him grinning as he flew through the air.

Now his name was being called, but he wasn’t flying, wasn’t smiling. The wall was still coming down on top of him, that he was sure of, but the figure was getting closer, running unsteadily from the shaking of the building, but then Hinata blinked and the wall smashed into the floor.

But Hinata wasn’t under the wall. He hadn’t been crushed by the stone. He was breathing hard, his ribs sending painful flares up and down his abdomen and chest, but his skull hadn’t caved in from the rocks. He opened his eyes slowly and clearly, still recovering from his moment frozen in time. Darkness surrounded him, but it was warm and… moving. Hinata’s eyes shot open as he pushed away, realizing his face had been buried in the front of the Karasuno volleyball jacket, and as he looked up, he caught a pair of eyes staring down at him. It was an eerily quiet moment as Hinata stared at the dark eyes glazed over with fear and flooding with relief all at the same time, and for that eerily quiet moment, Hinata let himself exhale, taking in the dark eyes that stared at him on the court, full of concentration as the ball would leave his fingertips and immediately find Hinata’s, like it was some instinct. Hinata didn’t have to process what had just happened, and the world was still tuned out by the incessant ringing in his ears and trembles of the earth beneath them. But then those dark eyes filled with a stomach churning pain, tears blurring the lines of the irises and desperately biting back the scream. Hinata’s eyes were able to glance down for a second, seeing the wall holding his leg hostage, and Hinata tried wriggle out of his grasp to help, but then a horrible tearing of the universe rattled through them, stopping their hearts and catching each other’s glances before the floor caved beneath them and they were sent falling down the rabbit hole.

But let’s rewind for a second.

**…**

“This is legit! A hotel?! We are about to get the royal treatment, Ryuu! They even have room service!” Nishinoya bellowed from the front desk as Tanaka passed through the sliding doors, his and Noya’s duffel tossed over his shoulders, and Kiyoko’s bag hanging from his arm. Ever the gentlemen. Ukai shot Noya a look, which the second year easily ignored and bounced up to Tanaka, shoving pamphlets in his face.

“Woah! They have a pool!” Tanaka exclaimed as Noya jumped up and down with excitement, Tanaka squinting to better read the pamphlet, shaking in Noya’s hands -since his hands were full of luggage-

“I know! Wanna be roommates?” Noya grinned, big and mischievous and Tanaka scoffed.

“Like you should even have to ask!” Noya punched him in the gut, hollering about getting room service and left Tanaka doubled over with the added weight of three duffle bags.

“Alright, alright. Gather around. You have the afternoon free, but tomorrow the training camp really begins. I’m giving you all room numbers, pick a roommate and getting going. And no, girls cannot share with boys.” Tanaka and Noya’s faces fell, instantly opening their mouths to complain, but Ukai shoved a room key in their hands and waved them off.

“Come on Daichi! I call the right bed!”

“Are we not sharing a bed?” The largest smile blossomed on Suga’s face, and he almost launched himself into Daichi’s arms, if it weren’t for Coach Ukai always getting in the damn way.

“I don’t know if you two should be roommates.” As much as the comment was directed at Daichi and Suga, the whole team burst into a blubbering mess of complaints.

“Because you two are dating, and even if it was say Kiyoko and Tanaka who were together, I wouldn’t let them room-” Tanaka almost passed out on the spot in the comment. “I don’t want any funny business.” Suga slid up to Daichi’s shoulder and grabbed his hand.

“Funny business? Coach, Daichi and I are mature, practical adults. If it was Noya and Tanaka that’s a whole other story. But you can trust us.” Ukai folded his arms across his chest skeptically, but nodded with a short huff of his breath. Noya and Tanaka were behind them snickering and making “butt jokes” that only proved Suga’s point.

“Alright! Upstairs, before I toss you all out on the streets. Nekoma will be here this evening and we’ll meet them down for dinner, but until then, please for the love of all things holy, stay in your rooms.” The team nodded and raced to the elevator, betting to see who could make it to their room first. Once the elevator doors swung open they stuffed inside until no one else could fit, leaving Tanaka now seemingly with five bags of luggage (he now held Yachi’s and Ennoshita’s) and Kiyoko.

“Ryuu! Noooo we can’t be separated!” Noya dramatically reached out his hand, like he was reenacting a scene from Titanic. 

“It’s okay bro! I’ll see you on the other side!” The doors slid shut as Noya climbed over Kageyama to wave goodbye to Tanaka, even though they would see each other in approximately 30 seconds. Kiyoko suppressed an eye roll as the elevator doors slid shut and the two were left waiting for the next elevator.

“I can carry my bag.” She whispered, reaching out to take it. Tanaka turned to her and smiled.

“Nah I got it. Hey so… Ukai.” She nodded, understanding his reference to the conversation a few minutes before. “Do you think he’s onto us?” The tiniest hint of smile appeared as the elevator dinged and they got in.

“I don’t think so. Nothing’s really changed about the way you act.” Her smile widened a bit as she pressed the button, her eyes glancing back at Tanaka, who grinned. “Although you are slightly less awkward than before.”

“Hey! I was not awkward!” She shook her head in disagreement. “I would kiss you to prove that I’m not awkward, but my hands are a little-” The elevator shifted to a stop, jolting them slightly and the doors begin to open but Tanaka didn’t realize it because Kiyoko’s lips were on his cheek and he thought he might just go into cardiac arrest.

“I’m going to go help Yachi settle in. See you at dinner.” She whispered then left him in the elevator. He was in such a daze, he barely realized the doors of the elevator were closing again, but Noya ripped them back open, launching on top of his best friend.

“Long time no see!” He exclaimed, helping Tanaka unload the bags and heave them down to the end of the hall where their room was. Hinata and Kageyama were across from them, arguing over who got which bed, and Noya rolled his eyes, wishing they would just share a damn bed already and get over all their feelings. Noya held the door for Tanaka as the two dumped their stuff on the ground and left it there for someone to trip over as they immediately took off down the hall to Daichi and Suga's room. The door was propped open by the inside swing lock, and the boys could be seen inside, stuffing their practice clothes into drawers and chatting idly as they did so. Noya threw open the door and sauntered in, Tanaka on his heels and the two collapsed on one of the beds with content sighs.

“Are you guys gonna unpack?” Daichi asked from the bathroom as he hung up his and Suga’s toiletry bags. Noya scrunched up his nose in disgust at the idea as Tanaka answered for him.

“Nah.” Suga laughed as he pulled open the window, letting the cool coastal air swarm in.

“Oh Daichi, after practice tomorrow we should explore the beach!” 

“That sounds like a great idea!” Noya pumped his fist in the air, but quickly retreated as Daichi and Suga shot him a look, eyebrows raised. Noya chuckled sheepishly. “Oh, you meant just the two of you.”

Noya threw himself back on the bed, lifting his right leg and throwing it back down over Tanaka, slamming his heel into Tanaka’s thigh. This sparked a wrestling match that completely destroyed the neatly done bedding, but they were laughing as they smacked each other, and at some point, someone had hit Daichi with their elbow as he tried to untangle the two, and pulled their captain into the spar, and soon enough, Suga to defend him.

They laughed and squealed and then Tanaka let out an unearthly shriek as Noya jabbed his fingers in Tanaka’s ribs making him contort from the ticklish spot.

“Children.” Tsuki huffed out as he passed by the still open door, his volleyball in one hand and a water bottle in the other. Tsuki was nearly ran over after that as Hinata came barreling down the hallway towards the ruckus and launched himself on the pile, earning himself a rough punch in the stomach from a squirming Suga. 

“Okay, Okay! Enough you guys!” Daichi pushed himself out of the dog pile, combing his fingers through his hair. “Nekoma’s gonna be here any minute and we’ve got to get cleaned up for dinner. The training camp is hosting dinner for the night at the restaurant across the street. And I don’t want to hear a noise of complaint while you all put on your suits!” Noya stuck out his tongue and clambered off the bed, his foot getting caught in the twisted sheets and sending him faceplant towards the floor. Tanaka’s booming laugh could be heard echoing through the hall, causing doors to be swung open and a very irritated coach Ukai to start stomping down the hall towards the source.

Daichi sighed. This was going to be a long week.

**…**

“Ugh! God damnit!” Hinata growled for the third time as he struggled to get his tie right. He was inches from the mirror, his hair still a tangled mess, collar crooked, and tie horribly screwed up.

“Dumbass.” Came a snarl from behind. Hinata whipped around ready to shoot back some snarky response, but Kageyama was already pushing his hands down at his sides and grabbing at the tie. 

“Well excuse me, Mr. Perfect Know-It-All! Some of us have never been to some fancy gala hall.” Hinata pursed his lips and folded his arms stiffly over his chest.

“You’re such an idiot. Does it look like I’ve been to a place like this? Just shut up and let me do it.” Hinata obliged, although he made it very clear that he was not happy about it, as Kageyama purposefully tugged a little harshly on the tie, making Hinata shoot him a glare. But Kageyama simply smirked and tied the tie until it rested neatly against Hinata’s white shirt. Hinata glanced up to meet the pair of eyes so dark brown, they were almost black, but in the leaking light from the sun setting outside their window, they held almost a bluish tint to them, vast and cryptic, like the ocean.

“Don’t forget to do your hair. Can’t have you looking like a homeless tangerine now.” Hinata snapped out of his trance, sent Kageyama a playful glare and bounced off to the bathroom to throw some of Noya’s hair product in his hair.

Meanwhile across the hallway, Yachi fiddled with her hands as Kiyoka tugged on her hair.

“I’ve never been out to a fancy place like this. Oh I’m so nervous Kiyoko-san!”

“Don’t be. You look very nice.”

“But what if! What if I spill soup all over myself! And then I meet some really handsome boy, but my dress is all ruined!” Kiyoko smiled to herself, pulling the bobby pin from between her lips and sticking it in Yachi’s hair.

“Then don’t order the soup.” Yachi cracked a grin and Kiyoko nodded, motioning to her finished hair.

“Thanks Kiyoko-san! And you look so pretty!” Kiyoko sent her a sheepish expression, for she always did feel out of place in a pair of heels, but her navy blue dress complemented her silver chandelier earrings, and the dress was pretty, although she wasn’t sure it fit right on her. She would have glanced in the mirror one last time, making sure she shouldn’t make any last minute adjustments, but Yachi was already dragging her out the door.

…

“Damn.” Suga mumbled as Daichi smoothed out the collar of his blazer. They weren’t in any tuxedos, but still, blazers were important. 

“What?” Daichi smiled as he looked up at Suga.

“Nothing… just damn.” Daichi threw his head back and laughed, stuffing the keycard in his pocket and quickly kissing Suga.

“No funny business, remember?” Daichi mocked, pointing a finger into Suga’s chest.

“What the coach doesn’t know can’t hurt him.” Suga said with a shrug. The pair snickered, but Daichi’s phone buzzed as his alarm went off, interrupting their moment.

“Time to go.” Daichi held out his hand and Suga grasped it, letting Daichi pull him out into the hall and towards the elevator. The rest of the team was there, except for Noya and Tanaka, and Daichi swore to God if the two were not ready he was going to throw them into the ocean. But just as the thought popped into his head, Noya and Tanaka were already racing down the hall, pushing and shoving each other, getting their clothes all wrinkled.

“Kenma’s here!” Hinata called out, as he frantically texted Kenma a thousand emoji’s. 

“Oh great. Can’t wait to see Kuroo.” Tsuki mumbled sarcastically under his breath, pulling Yamaguchi into the opening elevator. In the chaos of the team, they somehow managed to fit into two elevators, with Noya being squished between Asahi and Tsuki, unable to see that Tanaka had stepped off the elevator and waited impatiently for the doors to close. 

“What are you doing?” Kageyama commented from the other elevator, motioning to the space in the shaft. Tanaka simply shrugged and waved him off as the second pair of doors closed and he was left standing alone in the hallway, with the exception of Kiyoko.

He had yet to really look at her other than a quick glance across the room, signaling the same attempted plan as last time. She had rolled her eyes, but now she was standing before him, a shy smile tugging at the corner of her lips. And yes, Tanaka almost had a heart attack when he saw her in her dress, hair pulled back in a low, loose bun, and slight heels that made her reach his height.

“We missed the elevator. Guess we’ll have to take the next one.” She remarked, hesitating for the longest time before clicking the down button.

“Oops.” Tanaka’s face cracked in two by the size of his grin. “You… look-” He rubbed his eyes. “Woooow.” She raised an eyebrow as if she didn’t believe him, and the doors of the elevator swung open.

“I uh…” Tanaka’s face flushed furiously as he stuttered over his words. See? Awkward. “My hands aren’t full anymore.” He rubbed the back of his neck in his nervous habit and as the doors of the elevator closed Kiyoko shook her head, feeling just the slightest bit -okay maybe a lot bit- giddy as Tanaka kissed her in the shelter of the elevator.

“This feels like I’m rebelling.” He grinned against her lips. 

“You are a dork.” She teased, wrapping her arms around him in a hug. Tanaka could have died happy right then and there.

“Marry me please.” He almost sobbed, making her laugh, but the elevator dinged, letting them know, their secret was close to slipping out. They quickly let go of each other and composed themselves.

“You’ve been saying that since the day we met.” She whispered as the doors swung open and they stepped out of the elevator. They both hesitated, before Tanaka smiled proudly.

“And one day, it’ll happen.” He wanted to hold her hand, but the two went their separate ways, Tanaka towards Noya, who punched him for abandoning him again, and Kiyoko over to the Nekoma team gathered in the main foyer. They too were dressed up, but Kuroo’s hair was just as disheveled as always, and Lev’s pants were clearly too short for him as he scratched at his exposed ankles, but what else was to be expected? Hinata and Kenma collided, Kenma calling out “Shoyou!” as the two buddies were finally reunited. The rest of the team merged together, chatting and shaking hands in a reunion they always loved having. 

“AKAASHI LOOK! IT’S MY LITTLE ORANGE DUDE!” A voice boomed over the crowd of boys, making the concierge glower at him. But the white spikey hair was undeniably Bokuto as he pushed Kenma to the side and swept Hinata into a back breaking hug, several inches of space being left between Hinata’s feet and the floor.

“What are you doing here?” Hinata gasped out, grinning like a maniac.

“WE’RE HELPING!” Bokuto hollered, tossing the first year to the ground as Akaashi approached and laid a steady hand on his shoulder.

“Bokuto-san, quiet down before we’re kicked out.” Akaashi sighed and shook hands with a frazzled Hinata. “The camp’s having a few select high schoolers help with the training camp, it gets us community service hours, so naturally, I signed up. Bokuto-san here, only did it because and I quote “Broski’s gonna be there and I want to make fun of him the entire time.” Akaashi shook his head in disappointment as Bokuto proudly pointed to his “broski” across the foyer, Kuroo, who was busy harassing Tsuki. 

“Well it's gonna be a lot of fun!” Bokuto practically screamed in response, but Akaashi smacked a hand over his mouth.

“Would you please be quiet?” Bokuto shot him a grin and licked his palm, causing Akaashi to pull away in disgust.

“Alright boys… and Kiyoko, and Yachi. Lets move out.”

…

The gala hall was even more grand than Hinata originally imagined, with massive chandeliers and dark red walls adorning the inside of the building. The top floor sat high above the streets, the darkening skies paving way for the lights of the city to glow through the massive windows, soft and comforting. The tables were pulled together and the whole room roped off for the teams to sit together. Groups of six at the max could sit together at each table, and Hinata immediately sat down next to Kageyama, with Kuroo, Kenma and Yaku sitting down around them. Behind Hinata at the next table, Noya and Tanaka were ogling over the array of different forks laying out neatly across silk napkins, Tanaka pulling Noya’s chair out and bowing for “your majesty.” The boys immediately dove into conversation with an uneasy Asahi sitting across from Noya, Kiyoko sitting next to a now flustered Tanaka, and Ennoshita and Yachi across from them. 

“Wow! Tanaka gets to sit next to Kiyoko!” Yamamoto exclaimed, sitting down at the table next to Lev. Across from him was Narita and Kinnoshita, exchanging rumors about their fellow second year and the team manager. The waiters came out soon after that, menu’s stacked in their arms and glasses of water on their trays. The boys watched in fascination as the waiters moved around, handing them menu’s full of the fanciest meals they had ever seen. Hinata and Kageyama argued over appetizers and Noya (who had asked for a kids menu and was sorely declined) pouted as he examined his options. Kuroo had ordered the steak and every possible side dish only because the total was 69 dollars and the whole team erupted with laughter when they found out.

But then things settled down, chatter echoing through the room, faces glowing brightly against the sunken sun, the lights of the city reflected in their pupils.

“You guys are together?!” Bokuto suddenly roared from his seat, seeing Daichi and Suga’s intertwined hands. 

“Have been for like four months now.” Suga stated proudly, giving Daichi’s hand a squeeze. Bokuto slapped them both on the back in congratulations before diving into loud conversation. And that was how most of dinner went. They talked and laughed and often switched seats, ending up in a completely different order than they started with. They traded meals, picked at their vegetables and waited impatiently for the elaborate desserts presented on the menu.

Tanaka held Kiyoko’s hand under the table the majority of dinner, jealous of how open Daichi and Suga were being about their relationship. It wasn’t like they couldn’t be open with it, it wouldn’t change anything, but he and Kiyoko had talked about their relationship before. Secrets meant less drama, and more focus on volleyball, and she didn’t want to be held responsible for distracting him at the game. Tanaka had scoffed, saying that it wouldn’t change anything, but he had agreed. But as Tanaka watched her smile shyly, cheeks flushed from the warm lighting, Tanaka wasn’t so sure about that agreement anymore. He ignored the sinking feeling, joking around with Noya and Hinata behind him, calling Hinata out every time he got lost gazing at Kageyama. 

Kageyama was eating quietly and neatly, as if he was on a date, and Hinata couldn’t help but be mesmerized by it. He tried to make light conversation with Kageyama, but Tobio would fluster and stare down at his plate, responding coolly but on edge. This puzzled Hinata, as he had been acting like this a lot lately, but he shrugged it off and focused on the half eaten steak on his plate. He picked at his rice with his chopsticks, playing with his food more than eating it, as his mind raced with reasons why Kageyama was acting the way he was.

His eyes landed on the glasses of water, watching carefully as the water trembled slightly in its confinements. Nobody was banging on the table, so the vibrations felt out of place, and as he studied it closer, he realized it was familiar.

There was a movie he had seen when he was little. About dinosaurs coming to life and one of the characters, Malcolm, had explained you could sense the steps of the T-Rex by the vibrations the cup made when the earth shook. The characters had known that danger was approaching by the tremors of the water, as if it was trembling with fear. The same thing was happening here. Except no T-Rex would be in Japan, and so he shrugged it off and brought his gaze back to Kenma who was showing Kageyama a new game on his phone. Yet even as the vibrations of the water dissipated, he still had the sinking feeling as if something was towering over him. 

…

They stumbled back into the hotel just after ten o’clock and everyone hurried to their rooms, tossing on pajamas before running up and down the hallway, swapping rooms, chasing each other around, and at some point, prank calling each other’s rooms with the hotel phone lines. They traded sweets, gambled with a set of Kuroo’s playing cards, and ruthlessly challenged each other to truth or dare. 

After a while, Noya had deemed his phone line the “Jesus Hot-line” and others would call seeking advice from Asahi who was definitely not on board with Nishinoya’s mischievous little plan.

“Welcome to the Jesus hotline! How can we answer your prayer?” Bokuto and Kuroo snickered on the other line upon hearing Noya wrestle Asahi into answering the phone.

“Really Noya?”

“Yes!” Asahi sighed.

“Welcome to the Jesus hot-line.” 

“Uh yes, Jesus? Where would you suggest I hide a body?” Kuroo erupted into fits of giggles on the other line, Bokuto’s smile cracking his face in two. Asahi sighed before launching into a lecture why killing people was -surprisingly- not okay while Noya shouted suggestions in the background. But they all laughed and chatted and sang until they all practically passed out a little after three in the morning, most of them not in their assigned rooms, and for some reason, both Bokuto and Tanaka on the floor half hanging out of the hotel room and half in the hallway, snoring obnoxiously after coming off the extreme sugar rush of buying out all the candy in the vending machine.

It wasn’t like they had practice or anything the next morning.

Oh wait, they did.

Practice the next morning was a little sluggish, at least at the start as they all recovered from the complete lack of sleep. But the second half of practice went smoothly, with Hinata even managing to block one of Lev’s spikes, although his hand throbbed for 15 minutes after that. Bokuto flirted with Akaashi the entire time, making Tsuki and Kuroo snicker from the sideline, especially since Akaashi did not catch it a single time. And once practice was let up for the day, the boys dispersed. Hinata checked his watch to see it was still early afternoon, and stood in the lobby debating what to do.

“What are you doing stupid?” Kageyama asked, tossing his bag over his shoulder. His hair was drenched from the quick shower in the gym, his clothes clean, but wrinkled from the way he carelessly stuffed them into his duffle bag. He spun a volleyball around in his other hand, staring at Hinata, and when Hinata’s gaze met his, he stumbled and dropped the ball, watching it bounce against the marble tiles.

“There's so much to explore! I just don't know what to do first!” Hinata threw his hands up in exasperation, a wide variety of leaflets clenched in his fist. Kageyama thought for a moment, his cheeks suddenly getting red and he cleared his throat. He stood there awkwardly for a moment, as if unsure of what to say. Hinata caught it, for it was a recently common expression he found on Kageyama, but shook it off.

“Move out of the way.” Tsuki sneered, pushing past them, a towel over his shoulder. Yamaguchi ran from behind, flip flops smacking the tiles as he grabbed Tsuki’s hand, his towel wrapped around his shoulders.

“Come on Tsuki! I want to beat Narita-san and Kinnoshita-san to the pool!” Tsuki rolled his eyes but let himself be pulled idly by Tadashi as they crossed the lobby towards the stairs. Hinta glanced over Kageyama’s shoulder, seeing Daichi kiss Suga a quick goodbye, and when he looked to his right, he saw Tanaka sprinting out towards recreational hall, Nishinoya on his shoulders, their arms in the air, screeching with delight.

“I saw a cafe down the street. We could go there!” Hinata turned back to Kageyama who had stumbled out of his own thoughts as he heard him. He blinked several times, processing the statement.

“Alright.” He huffed out with a shrug, although he failed to hide just the slightest bit of a smirk when Hinata gave him a blinding smile.

“Okay great! I’ll go get my wallet!” Hinata turned on his heels and started walking towards the lounge and elevators, pondering his “maybe-date” with Kageyama, making butterflies flutter furiously in his stomach. His grin broadened, a bounce in his step, a plan engraved in his head. 

But of course, the universe just loved to test him. Loved to test his limits and see how far it could go to keep him caged. The world was ripped out from beneath him like a carpet, and he was tossed upside down into a new universe, one where caged birds couldn’t fly, one where the world began to shake and rattle in all its fury.

This is where it all fell apart.


	2. A World Without Gods

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ya'll I told you the angst was coming... it only goes down hill from here tehe.
> 
> Let me know what you though! And Thanks for reading!

**Chapter 2- A World without Gods**

Daichi didn’t remember much about the last five minutes. One minute he was kissing Suga goodbye, watching Suga bounce out the sliding glass door of the hotel and down to the nearby bakery for sweets, and the next he was coughing up debris as his world fell apart. It was like a freight train had hit him, a flash of blinding lights and a horrible ripping sound before his brain was rattled in his skull and the world went dark.

When he woke up, he was on the floor near the courtyard entrance. He remembered now that he was going out to the courtyard to meet Tanaka and Noya. He had kissed Suga goodbye and walked under the archway of the courtyard, still sheltered by an overhanging roof, vines crawling up the sides. But then the shaking had begun.

It was subtle for about twenty seconds, like a boat rocking lightly over choppy waves, but then the whole world was thrown upside down and Daichi heard the sound of metal creaking, wood beams snapping, and glass shattering. He covered his head and crouched down, but then the roof above him separated into two large pieces and plummeted towards him, forcing him to roll out of the way, but in the process hit his head on the pillar behind him.

There was a deep bruise on the back of his head that would hurt like a bitch in the morning, and a trickle of blood at his temple, but the worst of it was the straight gash in his arm. He stared at the wound in slight disbelief then blinked rapidly as he realized he was transported to a different universe. Once where the buildings stood tall, were nothing more than spiky ruins of some former civilization. The streets were rivers of invisible blood and remnants of a past not yet realized of its loss. He squeezed his eyes shut hoping that when he opened them everything was fine and that this was just some wild dream. He opened his eyes, sunlight leaking through the spaces where windows once were. He groaned and sat up, rubbing his neck, realizing what had happened. An earthquake.

“Tanaka?” A voice cried out from the center of the dust and smoke and leaking pipes. The debris in the air made the voice rough and raw, coughing lightly as they called out again. “Tanaka!” The voice cried out again, and Daichi, with gut wrenching anxiety, knew who it was. He peered through the smoke and saw the stature of someone his age, looking nothing more than a small boy, lost and scared and completely alone. Daichi reached out, calling to him but his voice simply wouldn’t work from the dust coating his lungs. 

“TANAKA!” Noya screamed, breathing rapidly and bent down next to a pile of concrete chunks, where moments before, Tanaka stood laughing and singing the lyrics to some Backstreet Boys song. Daichi struggled to stand, his knees buckling and the blood that poured from his arm, stinging his senses with a bitter smell and even worse appearance, one that made his stomach turn. But he approached Noya anyway, seeing him dig ruthlessly through the pile of rock, calling out Tanaka’s name over and over, not stopping to care about the rusted piece of jagged metal that pierced the palm of his hand, dirty blood foaming quickly at the surface. Glass was embedded in his knees as he dug through the large concrete pieces, and Daichi caught Noya's distressed look who caught the small patch of blood splattered against the rock he had just upturned. 

“RYUU!” Nishinoya screamed out for his best friend, his  _ brother _ , but when nothing but the trembling empty echo of his own voice replied, the boy collapsed to the ground, holding back a sob in his frantic state. Daichi was able to pull himself up and drag himself to Noya, resting his hands on his shoulders.

“Daichi?” Noya sniffled, trying to heave another rock off the pile, but hissed out in pain. 

“Come on, we have to find the others. There's a gas leak here, we can’t stay.” Daichi could barely get the words out of his mouth as he struggled to balance himself. But then Noya was screaming and thrashing, telling Daichi that he couldn’t leave him. He couldn’t leave his brother! And as much as Daichi didn’t want to admit it, couldn’t even let the words pass through his lips to tell the boy, but if Tanaka was under that pile, there was no way… no way he would have made it. But Noya was in such a state, that he couldn’t even allow the possibility, so he hoisted him to his feet and began to drag him from the site, feeling the gas fill his lungs with toxic smoke, burning through his esophagus and firing off the nerves in his chest.

“No! No! I won’t leave him! Stop! I’d rather die!” Noya kicked and pleaded as Daichi continued to pull him outside what was left of the building, only for both of them to collapse in the now unrecognizable street. Daichi blinked blearily, staring up at the clean blue sky, a few hazy clouds floating by, and a crow flying across, its guttural call lonesome. Noya inhaled and exhaled, in a heavy rhythm as he tried to rid the smoke and dust from his lungs and catch a whiff of clean air. But as soon as he could grasp at his chest, he was on his feet again, ignoring the swelling in his ankle and storming into the building.

“Yu! Stop!” Daichi caught his wrist in a harsh snag and tugged him back around. “We can’t lose you too. You have-”

“I can’t leave him! I won’t do it! I don’t care what state he’s in, even if he’s… I won’t let him be alone!” Noya shrieked, blood boiling with white rage as he kicked a stone, sending it tumbling down the street. It was empty and silent for a moment, not another person to be seen or heard. Daichi scanned his surroundings, wondering if they were the last two people on earth.

“I know Noya. I know. I can’t lose him either. But we need to find an adult and we need to see if others are around. We have to be strong, you hear me?” Daichi held his shoulders, applying a light pressure in his attempts to ground him.

“Okay. Okay.” He gulped, biting back a sob. 

“Good. Do you know where anyone else last was? Maybe we can locate them.” Noya’s eyes were wide with fear as he scanned the streets and the shifted hotel, now completely unrecognizable. It was like they were in a snowglobe and their whole world had just been shaken and now the snow fell from the sky in the form of debris and dirt, black and dirty, mixing with the brightness of their blood.

Noya bit his lip as he thought. He knew where one person was going. He had had the conversation just minutes before… but as he looked at Daichi, the only stability atop the shaking earth, he almost couldn’t tell him. Noya gulped and reached out, resting his hands on Daichi’s forearm.

“Suga. He was going up to your room. He said something about having a surprise, but he wanted to run up and get it.” Noya watched helplessly as Daichi's heart plummeted. No. No, Suga was supposed to be at the bakery, why the hell did he turn around. Being outside was one thing, but being in the elevators? Shit. The desperation in his eyes matched that of Noya’s except Daichi hadn't just lost a best friend, it was like he had lost the hopes for his future. Noya wanted to provide some comfort, but found there was nothing he could offer, and his legs wouldn’t allow him to move in for a hug, he was just so exhausted. But Daichi was silent and that made things insufferable, especially as his black stare turned towards the ruins of the hotel still crumbling around them. Suga was in there. He had to go back. A murderous determination filled him as he clenched his fists and set his jaw firm, but then he looked back at Noya, golden eyes worn out and filled with the sinking hope Daichi had never seen before. He couldn’t deny Noya the right to look for his friend and turn around to go back in for Suga, although for a moment it was tempting. 

Noya didn’t cry as he watched the realization fall over the both of them, he didn’t have any tears pooling in his eyes, red rimmed and stinging from the dust, but he did have the urge to scream. 

Everything was silent.

…

When Kiyoko woke up, the first thing she felt was the pressure throbbing against her temples, and as she blinked, adjusting to the rays of light shifting through the holes of the ruins the feeling intensified. She let out a groan, lifting her hand to gingerly pinch the bridge of her nose, hand moving up to then push back her loose hair. When she pulled her hand away, she stopped to study the light red stain painting her fingertips. Just great, she mumbled to herself. Ignoring the achiness of her whole body, she lifted herself off the ground, noticing the beams that had fallen above her, limiting her from standing tall. On her hands and knees, she surveyed the wooden slabs, cracking beneath her and heavy pillars, weak in their failing support. She could feel the unsteadiness beneath her palms as she crawled forward towards the light. She reached the hole, just large enough for her to stick her head out, but there was no way she could wiggle her shoulders or hips through, especially with the shakiness of the structure.

“Tanaka?” She called out, his name being the first name in her head. When no response came, her brain started racking with names, and she began calling out, waiting for a response.

“Daichi? Sugawara? Hinata?” She tried to widen the hole, but a pillar collapsed from behind, making her jump back trying to touch as little of the foundation as she could.

“Hello?! Anybody!” A voice hollered from her right. She knew the voice immediately and she smiled, relief flooding her.

“Azumane!” Kiyoko called, reaching her hand through the hole, waving it frantically. She heard a gasp and a set of footsteps, before a gentle, familiar face was peering down at her.

“Kiyoko? Are you hurt?” He asked, taking her small hand in his.

“Not badly. I’m trapped.” He exhaled shakily and scanned the pile of rubble.

“My arm-” He winced as he touched it, the way his left arm hung at his side, it was clearly dislocated. “I don’t if I can get you-” He held back tears, but they still blurred his vision, but Kiyoko squeezed his hand.

“It’ll be okay Asahi.” The words weren’t confident nor were they a comfort to either of them as they looked around the foreign landscape, but it did fill Asahi with just enough determination to try. He pried at the metal sheet that blocked the upper level of the hole, the one sheltering Kiyoko in her prison. She coughed and squeezed her eyes shut at the pain in her head, but her attention snapped back to the way the pillars began collapsing from behind. The more Asahi moved the plating, the more likely she would be crushed. He realized this and gasped, quickly stumbling back.

“We have to time it right. On my count, you lift it as high as you can, and I’ll pull myself out.” She steadied her rapid breath and nodded towards Asahi. He gulped but followed her cue. “One… two… three!” He lifted and almost simultaneously, the beams from above collapsed, but Kiyoko pushed herself out of the hole, her foot getting snagged under the beam, but not enough to cause any real damage. She rolled over onto her back and stared up at the endless blue sky and exhaled a sigh of relief.

“Thank you.” She whispered, reaching out for Asahi’s hand again. He took it cautiously, his whole body shaking. “Have you found anyone else?” 

“I found Kuroo, Lev and Yamamoto. Kuroo ran towards the beach though, he said something about watching for the tide’s recede.” Asahi’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion, but Kiyoko nodded, knowing why.

“He’s watching for a tsunami. The earthquake probably triggered one. I just don’t know how he’ll let us know it time, the phones are down.” She pulled out her phone, screen shattered but still functioning as she unlocked it and studied the bright “No Service” at the top. She shoved it back in her pocket and pulled Asahi along.

“We need to find Daichi and the others.” Asahi whispered, grunting as ripples of pain shot up his arm. As if on cue, the worst blood curdling scream erupted from the building, causing their heads to snap up in alert. 

“No! No! I won’t leave him! Stop! I’d rather die!” Despite the pounding of her brain against her skull, Kiyoko sprinted after the sound, flying over chunks of rock and street lamps and electrical posts. She rounded the corner, glancing back only for a moment to ensure that Asahi was following and stopped dead.

Daichi was out in the center of the street, trying to calm a frantic Noya, before the two of them fell into hushed conversation and even from her distance Kiyoko could see the sudden shift of fear in Daichi’s eyes, as if all the dreams of his future had hit a wall, trapped in the netting of a dreamcatcher.

“Captain!” Kiyoko called, racing towards the two of them, flinging her arms around Daichi in a hug. He was too surprised to hug back, at least not a first, but now the world wasn’t so empty. Maybe they weren’t the last people on earth. Maybe Suga would come too.

“Oh Kiyoko! You’re okay!... Asahi!” Noya beat Daichi to him, the second year going to throw his arms around him, but stopped as he took in the dislocated shoulder. They exchanged half smiles and little ease on the relief, and Asahi explained where Kuroo was, asking if they had seen anyone else. Kiyoko’s eyes fell on Nishinoya, who looked hollow. 

“You three stay here, I’m going to walk around and see if I can find anyone else. Stay out of the building, there’s a gas leak.” Noya let out a loud noise of protest, but Daichi shook his head, stern as ever and disappeared over the ruins. For the first time since before the earthquake's initial attack, Noya finally sat down, letting out a strained sigh. 

“Have you seen Tanaka?” Kiyoko asked tentatively as she sat next to him, folding in on herself. Noya, strong, free spirited, unbreakable Noya, collapsed into her side, dry sobs erupting from his raw throat, hands grasping at his shirt in pain and devastation. As surprising of a reaction as it was, Kiyoko didn’t break down from the shock of it, she broke down because it dawned on her that maybe she wouldn’t see Tanaka smile again.

And as silly as it sounded, whenever Tanaka had insisted that he would marry her one day, while she never believed it, now, she never wanted to hear the statement so badly in her life. As silly as it was, the feeling of knowing she never would washed over her like a wildfire consuming her lungs and heart.

“I-i-it collapsed… on him. I couldn’t… I couldn’t, I couldn’t.” Kiyoko leaned her head on his shoulder, taking his hand in hers for at the moment this was the closest she could get to Ryuu. 

“Not your fault.” She whispered, and if she had leaned her head on his shoulder at any other time, he would have fainted, but she was the only source of warmth, so he let his head fall atop hers and sighed.

“I hope the others are okay.” Asahi mumbled settling next to them. Asahi reached out and rested his hand on Noya's back.

“Me too.” 

…

Hinata awoke although he never really fell asleep. Time passed, and yet everything stood still. For one moment there was no noise and the next all he could hear was the incessant ringing, rattling through the ear canal and making him dizzy. He forced his eyes open and was met with a similar darkness, although it wasn’t warm. In fact it was cold where he was, not at all like the humid beach just a few blocks from… the hotel. It began to come to him now, in all sorts of flashing colors before his eyes, with conversations mixing with the ringing in his years, and as he looked around the darkness in search of something familiar, he was met only with his own warm breath, and musty smell. Hinata wrinkled his nose and rubbed his throbbing forehead, glancing around, waiting impatiently for his eyes to adjust, and found a figure laying a few feet away. 

The slightest bit of relief was sucked in with his inhale as he began to stand only to find his movements restricted as his head hit the ceiling, and he was definitely not tall enough for that to occur. He blinked rapidly, seeing shadowy outlines of pillars and walls and slabs of concrete creating a tent-like structure above him, only tall enough for him to sit up. He growled under his breath as he crawled towards the body and realized a few feet away, to his horror at its lifeless state, that it was Kageyama.

“Kageyama?” Hinata shook his shoulder and when there was no response, panic immediately overcame him as he pulled Kageyama onto his back, shaking his shoulders furiously. “Kageyama! You have to wake up! Please!” Tears filled his eyes as he leaned down and pressed his ear to Kageyama’s chest, hoping to catch a heartbeat.

“Hmm? what’re you doing, dumbass?” Hinata’s eyes widened as he looked up and met Kageyama’s bleary gaze, eyes glazed over and pain etched across his face.

“Kageyama! I thought you were… uh nevermind.” Hinata dodged the word “death,” as he threw his arms around Kageyama’s neck, only realising when he yelped.

“What’s wrong?” Hinata surveyed his body, not seeing anything wrong on the surface as his eyes trailed down from his head to his… oh. Hinata felt as if he might puke by the way Kageyama’s leg was twisted, bent horrible wrong. Hinata’s eyes jumped back to Kageyama, who tried so hard to keep his painful gasps in, couldn’t hold it any longer as his back arched slightly and his eyes rolled to the back of his head as he screamed the first curse word that came to mind. He tried to reach for his leg, but he found that it triggered ripples of pain that shot up his ribs and as he twisted away from that, his leg was pulled with it, and everything became worse.

“Shh, shh. Kageyama, I know it hurts. I know, but the more you scream-” Hinata glanced up at the way specs of dust and crumbs of concrete fell from above. “The more you’ll cause the roof to cave. You have to be still.” He knew that was easier said than done, but Kageyama kept screaming, clawing at his leg and desperately trying to roll himself away from Hinata as if cowering. It was a side of him Hinata had never seen before, the way so much emotion clouded his judgement. Normally he held nothing more than a firm scowl and on rare occasions, offered a tilted smile, so subtle most would miss it… just not Hinata.

“Please, Kageyama. Please.” Hinata begged, reaching out and pressing his hand down Kageyama’s wrist, pinning his arm to the floor.

“Let go dumbass!” His statement was interrupted by another grunt, and as he opened his mouth to let out another scream, he caught Hinata’s expression so full of fear and desperation, that Kageyama somehow managed to make his next scream into nothing more than a moan, which, unsurprisingly, made things worse. Because the screaming was one thing, but now the soft moans of endless agony filled Hinata’s ribcage, trapped in there like a crow with its wings clipped, never to see the view below again. A tear fell down his cheek.

“I know. I know, it must hurt so bad. But you have to look at me. You have to try and fight the pain, and you have to try and steady yourself.” Kageyama began to shake his head, but Hinata had released his wrist and instead took his hand, squeezing it gently. Under any other circumstance, Kageyama would have ripped himself away, for although he wanted nothing more than to hold Hinata’s hand, his trust issues always got in the way. But now, now Hinata's hand was the only warmth, the only sense of comfort he had.

A few silent seconds passed between them, and then Hinata pulled his legs out from underneath himself and laid down beside Kageyama, not once letting go.

“They’ll find us. They’ll find us and get your leg all fixed, and I bet we’ll be back on the court in no time. Okay? But you have to keep thinking that.” Kageyama hated holding onto hope, hated presenting himself with a false sense of security, but nodded as he was washed away by the unfamiliar dullness in Hinata’s eyes.

“Keep talking.” Kageyama choked out. He had to get his mind off the pain.

“Bet you never thought you’d say that.” Hinata tried to crack a joke and it did, ultimately serve its purpose, as the corners of Kageyama’s lips curled ever so slightly. The average person could never dream of catching such a smile, but Hinata did. He squeezed his hand.

“Just wait till I tell you about the conversation I had with Bokuto-san and Kuroo-san.”

…

A few hours was bearable. He could do it. After all the water was only at his knees. It wasn’t rising anymore, but the water was cold, and he was certain that if they weren’t out by night fall, then hypothermia could become a problem.

There was a long list of potential problems. But Yamaguchi had to remain calm. He had to, because while Tsuki’s expression was virtually blank, and he insisted his heart rate was steady, Yamaguchi could see the gleam of panic setting in behind his glasses, his pupils blooming in the darkness, adjusting to the world of shadows they had been plunged in.

A few hours were bearable. Yamaguchi told himself over and over. He said it out loud a few times to, to which Tsuki had scoffed at, but as he crouched down in the water, suppressing a shiver, Yamaguchi realized there was a problem far deeper than the ruins above their heads, the water pooling at their feet, and the compact space they were trapped in. That something was hope. More specifically, it was Tsuki’s hope that was being snuffed out like a candle without access to oxygen. He had a habit of being quick to lose that determination, but Yamaguchi had enough for both of them, he declared to himself.

“Hey Tsuki. I think maybe I can dig us out. Can you help me move this piece.” Tsuki scoffed and slapped the water with the palm of his hand.

“What’s the point? It’s a safer bet to just wait for responders.” Yamaguchi cocked his head.

“No way! We can do this!”

“Don’t be naive Tadashi. Just reserve your energy.” He stated this calmly, but his words held an edge to them, one laced with concern, not seemingly for himself, but for Yamaguchi. Yamaguchi shook his head vigorously, pulling at the debris pieces until he was worn out.

They could manage a few hours.

But then the aftershocks came. It shook their whole world. Yamaguchi clutched Tsuki’s shirt in his fists, the water rippling and splashing up to their thighs as he buried himself in Tsuki’s chest. Tsuki gasped, pressing himself closer to Yamaguchi, and when the shaking wore off, into a gentle trill of the earth, that's when the crack came. It sounded like a whip, or perhaps like a meteor making contact with the earth, and then seconds later, their world was no longer the darkness beneath the ruins, it was water.

And it was gushing in fast.

“Tsuki! Come on! Help me dig!” Yamaguchi screamed, water rushing in, rising up their legs, the bitter cold stinging their skin and making their breaths ragged with fear. Yamaguchi dove beneath the water tirelessly, relentlessly kicking and smashing in the chunks of rock that were blocking him from freedom. He screamed out in frustration, gulping for air, before diving back down, the water now at their rib cage. But something caught his arm and snagged him back to the surface.

“Tadashi stop! It’s no use!” Yamaguchi blinked, clearing the water from his eyes, and perhaps to make sure he was seeing this right. Tears poured down Tsuki’s face and suddenly the stoic middle blocker was nothing more than what he exactly hated to be; a boy. Yamaguchi shook his head, refusing to last him like this and ripped himself from Tsuki’s iron grip.

“We have to try! We have to! And if you won’t for you, then I will!” He sneered, pushing Tsuki to the side and diving again, pushing at the thinning layer of the wall. He felt the oxygen break from his system, his lung throb and his eyes burn. His body felt overly heavy… then too light, as he fought and fought.

But then he closed his eyes and water rushed into his body system. However water wasn’t rising to the top anymore. Now it was seeping through the wall Yamaguchi had fought through. 

A final blow to the wall did not come from Yamaguchi, but his heart dropped by the strange movement of the water pulling him in a different direction. He heard Tsuki call for him, not in raw terror, but almost in.. relief. His world went numb, but somehow, he knew it would be okay. 

  
  


…

Kiyoko held Noya’s hand. She never thought she would, nor did Noya ever think he would be so close to the woman he deemed, a goddess. But here she was, as calming as Eirene, the Greek goddess of peace. Noya and Tanaka had once dedicated an entire afternoon to learning about as many Greek gods and goddesses as they could, mostly to compare Kiyoko too, but also because a fair share of them were riddled with flaws and they found it absolutely hysterical to insult each other, by calling the other one those names. Like Narcissus, for example. Noya had once caught Tanaka kissing his own biceps in the mirror, and since the opportunity struck, Noya had taken up calling him Narcissus. 

But Kiyoko, Tanaka had determined, could not be matched up to any one goddess. Hinata had stuck his tongue out at the cheesiness why Tanaka announced this in the club room one afternoon, his cheeks horribly red and a starry-eyed gaze making his face light up as if everything was right in the world.

Noya closed his eyes. He inhaled, picturing Tanaka next to him, inhaling with him, but then he saw blood and his eyes shot open as a panicked scream worked its way up his throat.

“Hey. It’s okay.” Nishinoya blinked, twisting his head to look at her. She squeezed his hand harder, a surprisingly tight grip, and despite the stinging pain in his cut hands, he squeezed back. He could see her hands stained red with his own blood, and he immediately felt bad, shifting away from her, but she shook her head as if reading his mind, and leaned their shoulders together. He looked up at her, her lips tightly pressed and eyes staring straightforwardly. The side of her head had a light cut and blood mixed with her shiny raven hair, giving her a warrior’s glow. She looked like Athena.

And Noya would have smiled at the thought, and probably poked Tanaka in the ribs, making the comment loud enough for Kiyoko to hear. But Tanaka wasn’t next to him, and the empty space sucked him in like a black hole.

“You look like Athena.” He blurted, and immediately slapped a hand over his mouth. She turned towards him and the tiniest hint of a smile tilted up.

“Sorry. I- You just…” Noya stuttered and trailed off unsure of what to say.

“Thank you… You remind me of Thor.” She whispered shyly, letting her hair fall in wisps to cover her face. He scrunched his eyebrows together and cocked his head. He hadn’t heard of this god before. It was never in any Greek or Japanese Mythology book he read.

“Who’s that?” She sighed, and tucked her hair behind her ear. 

“The Norse god of strength and bravery.” She smiled just the slightest bit at him. “He is also the god of thunder.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll try and post a chapter or two every day from now on! It's all written and somewhat edited, so I'll do my best to stay on top of things! Until next time,
> 
> -Daisy


	3. The Epicenter of Stars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who's ready for more pain?! Daichi is not doing so hot, I can tell you that much, oh but all you Kuroo simps about to be blessed. 
> 
> Anyway, thanks so so so much for reading!

**Chapter 3- The Epicenter of Stars**

Daichi entered the hotel from the back. There wasn’t gas spilling into this part of the hotel, although he was sure it was only a matter of time. It was a race against the toxic air really, a race of whether he could reach Suga before he suffocated and if the gas leak could be turned off before it got to that point. Coiling knots in his stomach made it difficult to think as he scanned the nearly deserted area, as he now noticed a few maids, ushering out what residents and food preparers they could. One of the maids tried to push Daichi out with them, repeatedly exclaiming that it wasn’t safe for him here, but he ignored her, swerving away from the group and traveling down the hallway. At the end of the hall, where a few lounge chairs and pots of plants sat for residents to congregate, now was covered in dust, furniture shifted wildly throughout the room, and the large mirror on the wall, on the ground, shattered pieces crunching under his feet. 

Daichi stopped for a moment, looking at the piece, seeing his exhausted reflection, side of his head bloody, the bitter smell only now hitting him with a nausea tug of his stomach. He tried to shake the image of himself from his head as he stomped down on the glass letting it crumble into a thousand pieces beneath his heel. It wasn’t like the mirror could be saved anyway.

Stepping to the side, he found the elevator, doors open, but nothing but a dark shaft plunging down into hell. He peered into the shaft, eyes flicking up, seeing that the elevator was above him. 

“Suga?” He called out, hoping by some chance someone would hear him. But Daichi furrowed his brows, hoping it wasn’t Suga who was stuck in the elevator, that Suga was outside, safe and reunited with the rest of the team. Biting his lip, Daichi didn’t know what he dreaded more, the echo of his own voice, or an answer.

With no response, Daichi stuck his head further into the shaft taking a mental note of what floor the elevator appeared to be stuck at, ducked out of the shaft. He turned on his heels towards the staircase to his right, but paused as a sickening shriek ricocheted off the cracked walls. He whipped around and stuck his head into the shaft once more, seeing that the sound had been the creak of metal on metal, unsteady, like the foundation beneath his feet. It was the elevator that had made the sound, the cords holding it all together, shaking in the motionless gears. Daichi gasped and turned around, sprinting up the stairs towards the fifth floor.

When he burst through the door, he noticed an immediate change from the leveling of the floor, as it tilted at a strange angle, cracks in the walls deep and jagged, separating like lightning down the hallway. He gulped and approached the elevator. The doors were open, but he noticed the elevator wasn’t it’s position, instead stuck more than halfway below the doorway, only about a foot wide space allowing him to peer inside. 

“Suga?” Daichi called out again, and this time he heard a response.

“Daichi?” Daichi slid down his stomach, desperately reaching his hand through the space. Suga bounced to his feet from inside, grabbing his hand. Their fingers were trembling as they struggled to hold onto each other from the awkward angle.

“Oh my god. Daichi are you okay?” Suga whispered, trying to reach his other hand up to brush his thumb against the drying blood on Daichi’s face.

“Yes. Yes I’m fine. I barely even feel it. Come on, let's get you out.” Daichi tried to stand, but Suga tugged on his hand harshly, biting down on his lip. “Suga?”

“I tried already. But the elevator keeps shifting. I think, if I do anything else, it’s going to fall.” Fear clouded Suga’s light brown eyes, taking over like the ash cloud hanging above their heads. Daichi cleared his throat, the coat of dust in his lungs running his insides raw. 

“We’ll figure it out. I’m not leaving until I get you out.” Suga threw him a look, which he ignored, as he clambered to his feet and began to survey the top of the elevator, which he realized he could climb on top of. The extra weight would have sent Suga plummeting, but maybe he could pull Suga out from the top. There was a hatch, and below it would have been the ceiling mirror inside the elevator, so it wouldn’t be hard to remove. The question was how to get Suga out. A sudden shriek cut off his thoughts, as it seemed like the whole floor shook beneath him. An aftershock. The shriek again, was the elevator, rattling like crushed bones against the gears that remained still, the cord above becoming weak in its support. Daichi watched in succinct horror as the elevator dipped a few inches. Suga gasped from inside, clutching the railing on the far wall as everything began to settle again. Suga’s eyes widened as he looked up at Daichi. That had been the first aftershock. The first of many to come, they both knew. And after such a little tremor, the elevator had weakened again. Daichi laid down again reaching out for Suga who took his hand.

“It’s okay. It’s okay. I’ll get you out.” Tears pooled in Suga’s eyes, his grip tightening around Daichi’s fingers.

“Tell my parents I love them for me.” Suga whispered, for it was the only thing he could get through his brain.

“Tell them yourself.” Daichi shot back, using his other hand to push Suga’s hair from his eyes. With that, Daichi stood again, and began to lean over the top of the elevator, prying the hatch off, pausing with each creak the metal croaked out. Suga squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the moment that gravity betrayed him and sent him plunging to his death. 

Daichi cursed, at the metal sliced into his hands, leaving deep cuts stinging across his pal, much like the cut Noya had on his own hands while searching for…

Fuck.

If Suga got out, if Suga was safe in his arms once again, there wouldn’t be any real relief. Daichi would have gotten his boyfriend back, but he still would have lost a teammate, a friend… and part of him wondered if he would lose a piece of Nishinoya too. And here he was, risking his life saving Suga when he had denied Noya the same.

 _No_. That was different. If they had stayed in the lobby, the gas would have killed both of them. Daichi suddenly felt sick, and if he had a moment to breathe, all that would come from him would be vomit. But he didn’t have time for that, as he ordered Suga to the side of the elevator as he punched in the flimsy slab of ceiling, letting the mirror shatter at Suga’s feet.

“You okay?” Suga let out a weak yes, as Daichi peered over the hatch entrance. He tried to send Suga a smile, but it came out just as flimsy as the mirror.

“I can’t climb into the shaft, but I think since it's already holding your weight-”

“Barely!” Suga cried out.

“I know! But we have to try. Do you think you can climb on the railing and hoist yourself up?” Suga hesitated for a moment.

“...Okay. But. But promise me.” Daichi tilted his head. “Promise me, you’ll tell them.” His voice trembled. Daichi hated the venomous feeling, turning his insides to mush as Suga’s words eclipsed the sunlight. Daichi didn’t look him in the eye.

“Of course.” Suga nodded and kissed the back of Daichi’s hand, before letting go and crossing to the other side of the elevator. He began to hoist himself up on the railing, catching himself on the edge of the hatch as his footing slipped. He could feel the elevator shifting in the shaft, making his hands sweat and his grip loose. Daichi watched helplessly as Suga began to pull himself up, through the hatch, holding his breath as the groaning of metal threatened his life. Daichi scrambled to his feet to see Suga’s head poke out of the hatch as he hoisted himself up on to the top of the elevator. Suga barely had time to exhale, before another shriek blasted through him, and the pieces of glass flew upwards and suddenly there was no ground beneath him. There was nothing as he fell.

The view at the summit was a sight to behold. One Suga always loved seeing, but now as he dangled from the edge of the cliff, darkness swimming below, Suga never wanted his feet to leave the earth again. But Suga looked up and saw that he was still holding onto the cliff, or rather the cliff was holding on to him, firm like his missing foundation.

“I got you.” Daichi’s other hand held a tight grip on Suga’s arm as he curled his back, and dug his feet into the carpet, not ready to let go. Suga was almost too stunned by it all to react, but within milliseconds his brain was able to reboot and he was able to seize the doorway and with Daichi’s support, he was able to escape the darkness.

“I got you.” Daichi breathed out as he collapsed to the uneven floor, taking a moment to catch his breath and keep his heart from flying out of his chest, before Suga’s arms were around him, face buried in his heaving chest and Daichi couldn’t help by throw himself back into the floor, holding Suga on top of him. “I got you.” Daichi whispered again, holding Suga’s head with one hand and back with the other. Suga pulled away after a minute, gently running his fingers over Daichi’s temple, studying the wound. 

“Are you okay?” Suga choked out, pulling little pieces of debris from Daichi’s hair.

“No.” Daichi whispered back in all his honesty. “We need to get out of here.” Suga didn’t hesitate to stand, intertwining his fingers with Daichi’s as he pulled him down the staircase towards the lobby, only stopping for Daichi to explain the toxic gas leak and for them to sprint outside, collars of their shirts pulled up over their noses.

Daichi found the group just as he had left them, although the found members of Nekoma had joined up, and Ennoshita was with them, although his shirt was stained heavy with blood. Daichi slowed his pace, gripping Suga’s hand just a little bit tighter as his eyes landed on Noya. Noya’s head was cradled in Kiyoko’s lap, as he stared blankly at his hands, blood dripping from his fingertips.

“Daichi’s back!” Asahi called. “And… Suga!” The pair ran up to them, Suga taking a deep breath as he gave Asahi a supportive grip on his good shoulder, squeezed Kiyoko in a brief side hug, and was about to hug Noya when Ennoshita caught his attention.

“Shit! Ennoshita!” Ennoshita shook his head. 

“It’s fine! It looks worse than it is.” He winced slightly as he lifted his shirt. Gauze was already wrapped around his side. “I happened to get pinned but a maid found me and she happened to have a first aid kit with her. It’ll need stitches but for now, I’m fine.” Suga didn’t seem convinced, but he nodded anyway, his eyes now falling on Noya.

“Suga? You’re okay.” Suga nodded, but held back a grimace at the way Noya’s voice quivered as if his throat had swelled shut and his breath wasn’t reaching his lungs.

“Are you?” He barely got the words out before Noya’s eyes widened and he was on his feet, approaching Daichi.

“Where were you?” Noya demanded, his stare never leaving Daichi.

“T-the elevator. Daichi got me out.” Suga froze, as if he had said the wrong thing. And he watched as he fired the gunshot into the 5’2 powder keg in front of him.

“You! You went to get him! You went to save him and you left Tanaka to die! You left him! You made me leave him!” Noya screamed, causing the murder of crows sitting on the crumbling ledge of the hotel to fly off in a series of eerie calls as they disappeared from view. “You left him! He’s probably alone in the dark, hurt and scared, and YOU LEFT HIM. He could be dead!” Noya suddenly launched himself at Daichi punching and kicking and flailing as he sobbed, and Asahi struggled to hold him back. Daichi didn’t dare look up from the ground as he stood there. He deserved it.

It was his fault.

“Let me go Asahi!” Noya shrieked, ripping himself from his grip and charging at Daichi again, his footprints leaving dusts and gasps from the others as Noya slammed into Daichi’s chest. Daichi’s features scrunched together as he did the only thing he could think of, and wrapped Noya in a hug. Now it could never match one of Bokuto’s “make the world melt away” hugs, but it was enough to dissipate Noya’s thrashing limbs as he collapsed in his arms, tears pouring down his face.

“I’m so sorry, Noya. I’m so, so sorry.” He whispered over and over, knowing it wouldn’t do a thing. 

…

Kuroo stood at the highest vantage point he could locate that was close enough to see the incoming tide, but far enough, to make a quick escape. He watched the waves pull in and then retreat steadily, like a heartbeat pulsing calmly. The sun beat down on him, unbearably warm, but it sent rays plunging into the ocean, creating a cascade of gems going out as far as the horizon could reach. Kuroo ran a hand through his hair, thinking that under normal circumstances, the sight really would have been beautiful. 

But he watched, and he listened, and while he had a twinge of guilt knotting in his chest for not staying behind to locate the rest of his team, he stared at the tide rolling in soft, and easy and knew it wouldn’t always be like that. He tried to reason with himself, knowing that finding his team wouldn’t mean anything if they all drowned. But still, the calm ocean did hold a false sense of security, that despite his efforts still blossomed in his chest. 

So Kuroo instead waited. He waited for that sense of security to drown and promised himself not to dwell too much on it when it did. There was just too much at stake for such flimsy thoughts. He narrowed his gaze, eyeing as paramedics came rushing down the street in a commotion of jolted tires and sirens, however he watched as they went off in their direction, as if they had some distinct spot that needed their help. But Kuroo looked around seeing all that had been damaged by the earth’s rebellion, and sighed, wondering how they got to pick and choose such a destination.

He settled in his spot, thinking about his team again, specifically Kenma. Although he was worried for his team, he wasn’t worried about Kenma. He always did have a good gut instinct when it came to his setter, on and off the court, and even though his head and instinct brutally battled each other, the steadiness of his thoughts when Kenma was pictured in his mind, put him at ease. Kenma was fine, he was sure of it. He almost chuckled to himself, wondering if Kenma even knew the earthquake happened if he was sucked enough into his video game. His thoughts lingered on Kenma for a moment, before he saw a bird take across the sky, a crow. Strangely enough, it wasn’t Kurasuno that was first on his mind, but instead Bokuto and his stupid bird puns that he always made. Kuroo shifted again, this time a bit uncomfortably, as something heavy settled in his gut, and while he tried to ignore it, something didn’t sit right. 

He wondered if Bokuto was okay.

…

The stars were high in the sky, on a beautifully clear night. You normally couldn’t see them in Tokyo, as the shimmering city made them nonexistent, because all the wishes you made were supposed to come true on the streets of the city, with the warmth of the neon signs and atmosphere there embracing you in all that it had to offer. But tonight you could see them.

They almost laughed at Daichi. No, they _were_ laughing at Daichi. It was overwhelming, as he ripped on his hair, broken fingernails, digging into his scalp, scraps of dried blood, falling to the street in darkened flakes. He had to hold it together, for the team, for Nishinoya. He sat alone on the curb, watching a steady stream of water drip down the gutter beneath his feet. He glanced back at the group, the stragglers paying him no attention. _Good_ , he thought. Suga sent him a nervous glance now and again, but Daichi pretended not to notice. He was guilty enough as it was. Daichi did find himself staring at Noya, now looking smaller than ever, his larger than life personality, crumbling. Noya squeezed himself between Asahi’s legs, the back of his head leaning against Asahi’s chest as the two buried themselves under Asahi’s sweatshirt. The nights were surprisingly cold. 

Daichi glanced at his watch. 2:03. It had been twelve hours now. Paramedics arrived, well sort of, a few hours before, but when a call was received that there were over a hundred stuck in the top floor of a business building that was falling backwards, they picked up their staff and sped off, promising to come back. The stars still laughed.

Daichi pressed the heel of his hands so hard into his temples that it hurt, and at that he pressed even harder, wondering if it would make him dizzy. He didn’t look up at the sky, the constellations would simply mock him, and all he wanted to do was cry. He sighed deeply, squeezing his eyes shut. 

“You should get that looked at.” A voice cut through the star’s snickers. He didn’t lift his head, instead, he sunk his shoulders, and hid himself the best he could. The voice belonged to Kiyoko, as she sat on his right and lifted at the sleeve of his t-shirt. He winced at the gash on his arm, but she surveyed it carefully, wiping away dirt and dust with her sleeve. 

“Go help the others, Kiyoko, they need it.” she was quiet for a moment, and he so wished she said something, because the twinkling stars were insufferable.

“But so do you.” He shook his head. “Noya-san told me. He’s not angry.” Daichi scoffed. 

“Not at you at least. He’s angry at himself, at Tanaka for standing where he was. He’s angry at the hotel for not supporting itself. And he’s angry at the universe. He’s angry that you got Suga back and he didn’t get Tanaka.”

“And that’s _my_ fault.” Daichi whispered, choking on his words.

“I don’t blame you.”

“But Tanaka meant _everything_ to Noya. And I forced him out of there.” His eyes flicked up to Kiyoko, who narrowed her eyes in irritation as she pursed her lips.

“Tanaka was everything for me too.” Daichi lifted his head, a little “oh” escaping from his throat.

“You… uh, liked him?” They stared at each other from a moment, before she chuckled. Daichi tilted his head in confusion. “Why are you laugh-”

“We’ve been dating for almost a month.” Daichi’s jaw dropped to the floor.

“Oh my gosh! Kiyoko, why didn’t you tell us? I- Oh… Kiyoko, I’m so sorry.” Daichi buried his head again. “I’m so, so sorry.” Kiyoko tugged his face towards hers, holding his cheeks between his hands.

“Don’t apologize.” Her hands were warm, making his face red from the cool night air, and he wanted to collapse and let out the sobs trapped in his chest, but then he heard another voice, and for a second, he thought it was a star that had plummeted from the universe and landed in the heart of Tokyo. It was a smile bright enough to shadow the patronizing stars, and hair light enough to belong to an angel, and it was enough to distract for just a moment.

“Yachi!” Kiyoko, stood, wiped off her track shorts and hurried over to Yachi, wrapping her in a hug. “Oh where were you? Are you alright?” It was the most Daichi had ever heard Kiyoko speak, as she frantically looked Yachi over, but the girl just grinned and hugged her back.

“Other than my anxiety going through the roof, I’m alright! I saw you and I knew things had to be okay! I brought Coach, but have you seen Hinata? I’m worried, normally he’s like a beacon, but I just can’t see anything!” This time Daichi bounced up, happy to see Yachi, but far more surprised to hear from Ukai.

“Ukai!” Daichi yelped, sprinting towards Ukai, who spotted the group gathered on the street and was heading in that direction. 

“Daichi! Jesus kid, you don’t look so hot.” Ukai commented before of course, Ennoshita was caught in his scanning of the crowd and his heart fell to his feet. “Ennoshita?! Shit, you need to get this-”

“I’m fine. There are more pressing things.” Ukai skidded to a stop, utterly speechless by normally soft spoken Ennoshita and the way his deep brown eyes matched the darkened stain of blood caking his shirt. 

“We’re missing so many members.” Suga choked out, glancing back at Noya, who hadn’t said a thing in hours. His stare was glassy and faroff, but his pupils reflected the shiny stars doting the sky.

“Who’s missing?” Ukai asked, already gathering a good idea of who wasn’t present.

“Hinata and Kageyama. Tsuki and Yamaguchi. Narita. And umm… Tanaka.” Ukai narrowed his eyebrows, focusing on the way Suga hesitated on Tanaka’s name. “We are pretty sure… maybe not, but… Tanaka was-” Ukai held up his hand. He would not hear those words uttered from anyone. He refused to believe one of his boys was… no. He blocked the thought from his mind. 

“And from Nekoma?” Ukai winced out.

“Most are accounted for. Yaku’s missing, so is Kenma. Kuroo is at the beach.”

“Why the hell is Kuroo-”

“He’s waiting for the other shoe to drop.” Daichi said grimly, adding to the conversation between Suga and Ukai. Ukai tilted his head, but quickly got what Daichi meant. God, if a tsunami on top of that hit… a horrible knot twisted in his gut. Ukai rested a hand on Daichi’s shoulder, applying a steady pressure.

“Good job holding down the fort kid. You did good.” The team looked away, flashbacks of Noya’s eruption plaguing all of them. It was as if the sun had a supernova and now eternal darkness was laid upon them. Daichi shook his head, biting down on the inside of his cheek so hard, he could taste the bitterness that mixed with his saliva. He wasn’t going to crumble. _Not now_.

“What do we do now?” Asahi piped, wrapping his arm around Noya just a little bit tighter, trying to shield him from anymore pain. How the hell was Ukai supposed to answer that? He had been trained in Volleyball and restocking store shelves, not how to deal with the aftermath of an earthquake, with half a dozen boys surrounding him, scared and hurt and far from home. Ukai was as helpless as he could get, and the feeling made him curl his fists with impending rage, but he shoved it back down for a moment, seeing how Daichi’s eyes were so dull, how the strongest mentality of them all was beginning to fall victim to the ruins. 

“We stay here. I’m sure help is on the way. But if any members come back, they will need us here. Ennoshita, you need immediate medical attention and Daichi, you look like you might need it too… Asahi, is your shoulder dislocated?” Asahi shifted uncomfortably. “Give me two minutes, I’ll fix that.” Asahi’s eyes widened in horror, and he found himself burning his face in Noya’s hair, trying to calm his racing anxiety. 

“Am I caught up?” 

After Ukai popped Asahi’s shoulder back into place, and the echoes of his screams had dissipated, Ukai checked the other for injuries and settled on top of a parked car. He watched his boys, telling them to try and rest the best they could, even going into the front lobby of the hotel, despite Daichi telling him about the gas leak, and dragging three armchairs from the front room out towards the street. He made Ennoshita sit in one, and Kiyoko and Yachi both shared another, squeezing together on the seat, with Yachi passing out on Kiyoko’s shoulders minutes later. The third seat was given to Noya, who let out a noise of complaint, but Asahi had made him sit down, and immediately, he had curled up and stared at the empty street across from him. Ukai let out a puff of his cigarette, wishing it could have given him some sort of relief.

“Can I sit here?” Daichi whispered, glancing nervously up at the sky where the stars stuck their tongue out at him, forming charming grins with the patterns in the constellations. He growled under his breath, and slid next to Ukai as he nodded, the car creaking beneath them. There was silence for a while, and it made Daichi’s chest ache, weighing him down like he was filled with water, drowning in his own thoughts. He watched carefully as Ukai pulled the cigarette from his mouth, a huff of smoke rising slowly above them, the stars dulling between the fumes. He tapped his finger against the end of the cigarette, dying ember floating to the ground, burning out into little flecks of nothing.

“Can I have one?” Daichi asked, and he was surprised to hear the question come out of his own mouth. He expected Ukai to say no. To lecture him about how smoking was bad, and Daichi would have nodded, knowing that it was. But that was then, not now. Now, Ukai dug his half empty pack from his pocket and handed it to Daichi. Daichi pulled one from the case, pressing it tightly between his fingers, and used the lighter from Ukai’s other hand to light it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you thought! Until next time,
> 
> -Daisy


	4. Beneath the Ruins

**Chapter 4- Beneath the Ruins**

Darkness. Blood. It was his world. It had become his foundation, and it had become all that he knew between states of life and death, dangling at the cliff edge, knowing how easy it was to let go. To fall. To let everything crumble. 

Breaths were no longer clear. Blood filled the empty spaces of a longing imagination, and then there was nothing. Almost. He was a dying ember.

But still, he wondered, could he fly again?


	5. Dawn of Death

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's chapter 5! So last chapter was really short but it was a doozy. If you caught on to who that's about you are in for a world of pain still...
> 
> Anyway, I hope you all enjoy!

**Chapter 5- Dawn of Death**

It was the most brilliant view, the sunrise that was. Or at least, it would have been beautiful, especially by the way it pierced through the big glass windows, turning the world into a thousand crystals, shimmering in the air with rainbows spitting fragments of color against the thick glass shards. It would have been beautiful, if it weren’t for the ugly way blood dripped from the jagged spikes like formidable mountains in which Akaashi was nothing more than a victim to its power. 

The sunrise was a sign of lost hope. A mockery to his situation, in which he dangled from the mountain’s edge, bracing for impact. He wondered for a moment, if Bokuto would have held on to hope, if he had seen the sunrise. Maybe he would have seen it not as the dawn of his death, but as the bringer of his savior. But there was nothing, nothing to save him, except for the release of his grip around the pillar and to let himself fall.

Maybe if Akaashi hadn’t taken the sunrises for granted, maybe he could stand to see a few more. Maybe even to see a few with Bokuto, on those early morning hikes he was always dragging him out to. At the time, he kept his head down, watching for rocks that tripped him up, and half listening to Bokuto point out every squirrel they passed. And they passed a _lot_ of squirrels. The only time that Akaashi had really looked up on one of their hikes was to watch an owl pick at a squirrel between its talons, big amber eyes matching the dripping colors of the sunrise, and when it glanced down at the two of them, it tilted its head, as if wondering why Akaashi was so worried about tripping over roots. Not that it could have made such an intellectual query, but maybe Akaashi was asking himself the same thing.

The hike up the mountain had ended with the half melted chocolate bars that Bokuto had stuffed into his pockets and happily shared. The view at the top must’ve been nice, but Akaashi was far too focused on the long trip back down to spare a glance at its beauty.

And he regretted all of it. 

But not as much as he regretted going to the top floor of the hotel to workout, despite Bokuto begging him to go to the beach. He at least wouldn’t be the squirrel trapped in the owl’s talons if he went to the beach. But like the squirrel, there was nowhere left to go.

Akaashi squeezed his eyes shut and leveled his breathing. He had somehow managed to heave himself up and balance himself against the vertical pillar that was leaning more horizontally now, like a beam shooting across the uneven floor and becoming his only support above the glass windows beneath him, with the river of concrete splayed below. So far below. He wondered if people would find him, or if he would be stuck up here forever. Or maybe he would fall.

Only time could tell.

“Akaashi!” His eyes shot open, twisting his torso to meet Bokuto’s amber eyes staring at him. He was standing at an odd angle in the doorway, or perhaps it was because the doorway was at an odd angle- almost completely sideways. As he squinted he saw the little patch of blood on Bokuto’s shirt spread out like a blossom, and that undoubtedly contributed to the way he stood, slightly scrunched up on one side, hand grabbing at his oblique.

“Bokuto-san! H-how?”

“I’m gonna get you out Akaashi!” He went down on his hands and knees and pressed his hand on the glass panel in front of him, but as he dropped his weight down to inch forward, the glass panel shattered, the dull reflection of his fear flashing in the pieces as they fell like glitter into the street. Bokuto retreated, staring at Akaashi’s wide grey eyes, like all the color had been drained from the world.

“Stay there.” Akaashi said, uncharacteristically on edge. “Please, just stay there.”

“I can’t just let you- you sit there! I just spent the last several hours searching for you!”

“Bokuto, don’t move! I… I thought you went down the beach. How’d you get back?”

“I didn’t go to the beach.” He huffed out, folding his arms across his chest. Akaashi jabbed a finger in his direction, brows furrowed.

“You had begged me to go to the beach!”

“Yeah, because I wanted to go to the beach _with you_.” Akaashi’s gaze softened. 

“Oh.” Bokuto snorted, quickly dropping the conversation as his cheeks deepened in color and he set to work analyzing the situation, glancing between Akaashi, the pillar, and the glass panels. Akaashi watched him think, mesmerized by his animated expressions as they moved with his thought process, from concentrated, to a confident smile, to an unsure shake of his head.

“Please tell me you’re not asking yourself “what would Kuroo do?”.” Bokuto shot him a look.

“Okay well, that’s my only option under stress, Akaashi! I don’t handle stress well! Or failure! And what if I fail at getting you down?! That’s a pretty big fucking failure!” Akaashi threw his hands up in surrender. 

“That’s why I’m telling you not to worry about it. Just get out of here, it's not safe. Find first responders, and tell them where I am. They’ll get me down.” That sounded so reasonable, so easy. Which is why Bokuto completely ignored Akaashi’s suggestion. 

“If I walk across the metal bars between the glass panes, I think I can get over to you.” Bokuto sent him a thumbs up.

“You think?!” Akaashi exclaimed, frantically trying to stop Bokuto from his insane idea, that would surely send him through the gates of the sunrise, the bringer of his death. The sunrise would surely betray him, just like gravity betrayed him, just like the earth broke its promise of stability.

Bokuto ignored Akaashi’s sputtering, inching his way across the metal bar, the windows crackling under him, spreading like rose vines against the glistening sun, becoming little rainbows in the prisms of his entrapment. Bokuto stuck his tongue out in concentration, his eyes widening when one of the window panes shattered and fell like acid rain. The sound of it made him stumble forward, a yelp escaping him as he planted his foot in front of him, almost as if he was setting up for one of his spikes, and pushed off the bar, his arms catching the pillar, just as the metal bar popped out of place and swung downward, the panels of glass attached to it plummeting towards the street. Akaashi so hoped no one was below.

“Bokuto-san!” He scrambled forward, and heaved Bokuto up onto the pillar, the stone shifting with a groan with the added weight.

“What were you thinking?” Akaashi hissed, his voice low and even until the end when it began to tremble just in the slightest. But Bokuto threw his arms around him, squeezing him so tight, his airways shut down.

“You gotta set for me again ‘kaashi. I only see the view because of you.” Bokuto whispered into his shoulder and Akaashi wrapped his arms tighter around him, pressing his nose into the crook of his neck, letting out a sigh.

“I’d start noticing the view for you.” He whispered back, his hands grasping at Bokuto’s shirt. Akaashi wasn’t entirely sure they were talking about the same view, but maybe, just maybe, they were.

“Hey Akaashi? It’s not that I don’t want to hug you forever- ‘cuz I do! But uh… I think that uh… I think we’re both stuck now.”

…

The temperature plummeted sometime after the two had curled together. Hinata had pulled Kageyama’s jacket off and used it to wrap around both of them, trying to conceal the shivers that rippled down their spines. Hinata flexed his fingers, trying to keep the blood moving, but found his muscles stiff. His stomach growled with hunger and it filled the quiet atmosphere with gurgles that made him smile sheepishly. Kageyama attempted to smile back but it was shadowed by the groans of pain and deep scowl contorting his features. 

“I miss Natsu.” Hinata suddenly whispered, his voice trembling like the concrete slab below him every time an aftershock threatened to shift their sturdy position trapped under the building. Kageyama’s eyes widened at the confession, Hinata not one to make himself look or sound small, but the way his voice cracked was like the sky cracking in two.

“I miss milk.” Kageyama’s sore attempt at a joke worked, but only because he was desperate, and that made Hinata shove him in the shoulder playfully. 

“I miss my bed.” Kageyama hummed in agreement.

“I would kill for a bowl of spicy ramen.” Hinata wrinkled his nose.

“You hate spicy ramen!” Kageyama’s eyes rolled back slightly as he withheld the urge to grasp at his leg in the shooting pain rising up his lower back. 

“...yes, but now, I miss hating it. We can’t do anything down here.” Hinata shrunk his head back in his shoulders, and nodded. He couldn’t help but feel like it was all his fault. If he hadn’t froze in front of the wall, Kageyama wouldn’t have pushed him out of the way. If Kageyama hadn’t intervened, then his leg would be broken, and just maybe if that didn’t happen, they could have dodged the caving floor and they wouldn’t be here.

But that was a lot of ‘ifs.’ 

“What are you using your one brain cell to think about?” Hinata shot him a glare.

“Yeah well at least I have a brain cell!” There was a long pause, before Hinata actually considered answering Kageyama’s question. He suddenly didn’t feel like talking anymore. Kageyama raised his eyebrows, impatiently waiting for a reply.

“You. I was thinking about you. How this is my fault.”

“How the hell is an earthquake your fault?”

“Because stupid! If I hadn’t been such a baby and just moved from the wall, you would be fine!” Hinata folded his arms as if it was obvious. Kageyama glowered, his eyes lit on fire with impending rage, and it scared Hinata to see the emotion normally so well hidden.

“Dumbass, it was my choice to push you out of the way!” Kageyama’s voice shook up Hinata’s insides like an earthquake of his own, and it left his pounding heart in a permanent aftershock.

“Why? It could’ve killed you! Why would you be so stupid?!” Hinata was shouting now, and it caused dust to fall like rain droplets, and it made Hinata miss the rain. He loved the sunshine, but there was something about letting the rain kiss his cheeks in the warm summer afternoons that just made him burst open with happiness. Now there was nothing but a dry, bitter taste in his mouth and a musty scent hanging in the air. He wondered for a moment, if it was raining outside. For such chaos that the earth was in, it made sense for the sky to match up and let the storms come rolling in to shatter the wings of the birds that had escaped the land’s rebellion. But maybe it was sunny instead, like the sky was mocking the complete misery and ruins that sat below.

“Because!”

“That’s not an answer!” They were both shouting, trying to overpower the other like thunderous clouds trying to overpower the cracks of lightning.

“It doesn’t matter!” Kageyama roared, shoving Hinata back and trying to crawl away, but his leg twisted with his movements and he let out a scream.

“Yes it does! You’re hurt because of me! If I had just moved-”

“Shouyou!” Silence. Kageyama had called his name a thousand times before. On the court mostly, just milliseconds before they landed a perfect kill. There were time when Kageyama screamed his name from across the gym, livid about some dumb thing Hinata had done and there were times where Kageyama whispered his name, in a slightly less strained tone than normal, his way of giving a compliment. Nobody would have understood that that was a compliment, but then again, those people weren’t Hinata. But Hinata had never heard Kageyama say his _name_ before, not this name, and it was strange, the way it sounded. He couldn’t decide if he liked it or not.

“I wasn’t thinking! I saw the wall, then I saw _you_ , and it’s like everything went black. My body moved before my brain knew what was happening, like an instinct.” Hinata blinked back at him cluelessly. “Like… Like when I toss to you. I just know you’re there, I don’t even have to look, you’re already there and my hand just moves in exactly the right spot and the ball reaches you perfectly. Like that. Except I saw you, and I saw the wall, and I wasn’t going to let it get you. Not now, not ever.” 

A shiver ran down Hinata’s spine, but he blamed the cold. Hesitantly, he shifted closer to Kageyama, his lungs suddenly hitching horribly and his words not working for his mouth. He tried to shove the boil in his chest down, but it simply overflowed him, until he was consumed. 

“Thank you.” Hinata whispered, so low, Kageyama almost missed it.

“Don’t make it weird.” Kageyama scoffed, but his cheeks were flushed a deep red, even though it was bitter cold, his face felt unbearably hot. There was a wave of silence that engulfed them, as Hinata inched closer and Kageyama was forced to lay back down because he could no longer take the swelling pain accumulating in his leg.

“Kageyama?” Hinata mumbled, and maybe it was the earthquake that shaken his insides like this, making his stomach tickle with butterflies and his heart flutter, and maybe it was the several flashes of moments almost taken from him that made his racing thoughts so much louder than usual. Maybe it was the darkness that made him so uneasy that he followed the only light he could find. 

Maybe that’s why he reached out, took Kageyama’s hand in his.

Maybe that’s why Kageyama didn’t let go.

But that was a lot of ‘maybe’s.’

…

Suga sat next to Daichi on the curb. He was fiddling with a cigarette, long ago burnt out and only half used, but still, the sight was odd. He was quiet, fixated on the shattered glass at his feet, reflecting a hazy appearance of his features, worn out and almost unrecognizable. It was to be expected really. Looking into a mirror to see a stranger staring back would be unnerving, but over time it would simply fall into background noise. 

Suga reached out his hand, expecting Daichi to take it, but his palm sat face up, cold and empty. So instead Suga, wrapped himself up in his sweatshirt and watched Daichi smash the end of the cigarette into the ground, and the fibers spill out like ash on the pavement, cold and empty. Suga opened his mouth to speak but found that no words could work their way up his throat and he was left there mouth agape like an idiot as he watched the boy in front of him hang from the edge, more than ready to let go. Suga just wished he wasn’t so damn stubborn.

At least they were secluded here, watching the first signs of orange peak over the deep purple horizon. Daichi had removed himself from the rest of the group, positioning himself near the back alley where the parking garage sat, the concrete floors that held the cars on the brink of collapse. No one could see them from this angle, and Suga wondered, if under normal circumstances, they would have still found themselves in this spot, laughing like idiots together as they stole quick kisses away from the nosey eyes of their teammates and the strict “no kissing” policy from Ukai. Ukai meant well, and the rule applied to everyone, especially since he had made a bet with Daichi a few weeks prior to see how long it would take for Kageyama and Hinata to get together. Suga wished he could have found the energy to laugh. 

The glass shards at their feet, he noticed, reflected him too. He wondered if he looked different to Daichi, because he sure looked different to himself.

“Hey, you know I love you, right?” Daichi, whispered suddenly, cutting the thick silence into something far worse, in the way darkness corrupted his tone. Suga gritted his teeth, trying to force the darkness out of him.

“I think so, but say it again just to be sure.” Suga gave him a cheeky grin, trying to be wholehearted in his mannerisms, but finding that increasingly difficult. Daichi looked up from his fascination with the crushed cigarette, but didn’t smile.

“I love you.” The words may have left his lips, but it was the silence that sent ripples of shivers down Suga’s spine, trying to understand the distant familiarity of his words, and yet, the way they were said were almost like a death sentence. The first rays of the sunrise peaked over the hole in the buildings where windows once were.

“I know you do, Daichi. What’s this all of a sudden?” Suga choked the question out, afraid of the answer that would come from it. Daichi leaned on his left hand, pressing it into the ground as he kissed him, just like it was an everyday thing, which it was. But Suga pulled away from the contact, eye narrow and pursing his lips at the foul taste of cigarette smoke on Daichi’s mouth. 

“Talk to me Sawamura.” He looked like a shattered antique mirror, sitting in the dark attic, lost in purpose. Daichi shook his head, letting his gaze fall back down on the cigarette. He suddenly wished he hadn’t smashed it. He wished he had taken the lighter from Ukai and lit it again, finishing it off. But he had hated the taste of it, hated the way it made his lungs heave for air, as if he wasn’t already struggling enough. 

“Koushi, I-” There were no words to put into feeling in the way everything just _hurt_. Even though he had escaped the earth’s rebellion relatively unscathed, except for the gash in his arm and painful throb of his head, it was like he had been crushed. 

His spirit had been crushed. He believed he had no one to blame but himself and perhaps that was true, but as he looked beyond the alley, to the sliver of street visible from his spot, he could see the ghosts wandering aimlessly and he saw Tanaka’s spirit with them. He saw those grey eyes, but all he thought about was red. Red like the blood spilling down his arm. Red like the blood on the upturned stone Noya had desperately pulled from the pile. 

It should have been him.

At the thought, so much rage engulfed him, and in his helpless state he collapsed, no longer able to take it. He couldn’t do it. He couldn’t keep it together.

 _“You did good, kid.”_ Ukai’s words echoed through him in a sickening twist of his chest and suddenly he felt the urge to vomit. He could barely comprehend the guilt filling his insides like toxic fumes until he let out a dry sob, crumbling to the ground. He had let go of the cliff, and while Suga hated the way he collapsed forward, dirty tears leaving reddened streaks on his dust covered face, it was necessary. Daichi needed to let go.

“I killed him. I killed him, I killed him, I _killed_ him! I’m so so sorry, I-” Suga cradled him in his arms as Daichi let out a raspy scream, his body shaking furiously, his sobs a haunting echo in the relatively quiet city streets. He mumbled incoherently, tears streaming down his face, throat raw, and the gash in his arm reopening, mercilessly spilling blood across Suga’s shirt. Daichi let the blood spill, let the sting of the wound consume him, because it should have been him.

Suga wondered if they would ever be able to look into a mirror again.

…

Kuroo left the beach several hours after the sun came up. By its position in the sky, it was almost noon, and he would have stayed, but the news broadcasters showed up, the local meteorologist reassuring him they were monitoring it, and shooed Kuroo from the scene. 

His next move was to find his team, he determined, stepping over rubble and weaving around fallen lamp posts. It wasn’t hard to reach them, the unmistakable crowd of shaken teen boys, grouped together on the street’s edge, battered and broken, in a thousand different ways. And when Kuroo did, he couldn’t help but sigh in relief at the sight, seeing all of them gathered together. He noticed most of them were reunited too, there were only a handful of boys missing, most notably, the short orange haired boy of Karasuno, and when Kuroo scanned the crowd, he noticed that Bokuto’s blinding smile was missing too.

“Kuroo-san!” Yamamoto shouted, standing on top of a car. Why he was standing on the car, Kuroo did not have the energy to ask, so he simply waved back and hurried over to his team, roll-calling everyone, and accounting for the one missing head from his crew. Kenma.

“Has anyone seen Kenma?” An odd wave of silence rippled through them.

“...We all had an afternoon free, so Kenma went down to that arcade store a couple blocks down.” Yaku hesitated speaking, his voice hoarse as he pressed a shred of what looked like his own shirt against the back of his head. Lev was standing next to him, trying to provide some form of comfort, but he was awkward and stiff, and horribly failing at telling jokes to make time pass. Kuroo ran his hands through his hair anxiously.

"And Bokuto? Has anyone seen Bokuto?” There was a franticness in his voice that the team didn’t recognize, for their normally collected captain. They all bit their lips and shook their heads, watching Kuroo’s expression fall. An awful knot twisted inside of him, like glass shards piercing into his rib cage, making his nerves catch fire. He shook himself from his thoughts, suddenly realizing the several pairs of eyes burning a hole right through him. He felt the tug of his stomach and the urge to puke became much stronger than the initial fear of the earthquake itself, but he clenched and unclenched his fist and inhaled.

“Okay first order of business.” Kuroo started, clapping his hands together. “I’m gonna get Kenma. Yaku and Kai, you two are the most injured, so you’ll stay here. Lev, you’re with me… and Yamamoto, uhh… you just sit there and look pretty.”

“Hey, I can help!” Yamamoto shouted, but Kuroo’s attention was already on Karasuno. 

“Has anyone seen Daichi and Suga?” Ennoshita raised a hand from somewhere in the back of the group, clenching his side, but Lev reacted first, drawing all the boys stares at him. He grinned as he turned his back to them, wrapping his arms around himself in an odd hug, making kissy noises and running his hands up and down. The group fell into muffled chuckles, except for Kuroo, who smacked him so hard on the back of the head, Lev stumbled forward. Kuroo growled under his breath and scanned the crowd for somebody with an ounce of maturity.

“Asahi! where’s Daichi?” Asahi lifted his head, eyes red rimmed and clearly on the verge of a panic attack. He didn’t answer right away, but his expression told a story of a dying sun and Kuroo hated the way it darkened as he glanced towards the alley way. Kuroo caught it and nodded, assuming that Suga must’ve been there too. “Asahi, I’m gonna get Suga to come with me, and check on Daichi. Can you and Noya scout the area for paramedics and Tsukishima? I notice he’s missing, and his little pipsqueak sidekick’s missing too. Don’t go in the hotel though. You got that?” Asahi gulped and gave him a stiff nod. With Kuroo taking charge as he always did, the team found themselves able to relax slightly.

“What about the tsunami?” Asahi piped up. 

“We’re good for now. The news is following it now… hey Kiyoko!” Kuroo called, his direction suddenly shifting towards the manager, sitting quietly next to Noya, like a guard dog of sorts, shielding him from the threats of this world. The tide had truly turned, he noted, as it was normally the other way around.

“Are you well?” She nodded. “Can you come too? Incase we run into Bokuto or Hinata. We may need an extra pair of hands.” She was up in an instant, whispering a quick goodbye to Yachi, before hurrying up to Kuroo. “You and Lev start walking down the block, I’ll get Suga.” Kuroo made his way towards the alley, now that things were situated, forcing a smile when Karasuno’s coach gave him a thumbs up. When he turned the corner, he found Daichi and Suga -thankfully- not making out like Lev had so helpfully commented. Not that Kuroo was expecting them to be messing around, they were both sensible boys, but what Kuroo was not expecting, was the way Daichi’s head was cradled in Suga’s lap, Suga’s hand rubbing light circles in his back, as it looked like Daichi was staring the grim reaper in the eye.

“Kuroo? You’re okay!” Suga offered him a slight smile but it disintegrated quickly, eyes flickering down towards the contorted pain twisted on Daichi’s face, crystal eyes shattered and normally stoic expression now void of any resemblance of the person he once was.

 _“What happened?”_ Kuroo mouthed, and Suga shook his head, tears springing to his eyes. 

“Kuroo?” Daichi huffed out, pushing himself away from Suga.

“Hey kiddo.” Suga rolled his eyes at the response, but Daichi remained silent. His gaze was distant as if watching the ghost pass silently from behind him, and it was insufferable. “How’re you doing?” Kuroo cringed the second it came out of his mouth.

“Fine.” Lies. All lies, and it stung horribly, how clear it was, but there was absolutely nothing they could do. 

“I need to find Kenma. And if I can, Bokuto and Akaashi. I’ve handed out jobs to the teams, but I’d like Suga to come with me.”

“I can go.” Daichi stood, and ignored Suga’s noise of protest.

“Uh, all due respect Daichi, but you like shit. You should stay here with the other injured and-”

“I need to do something, dammit. All I’ve done is not fight. I _need_ to do something.” Kuroo and suga exchanged a nervous glance, before Suga laid a hand on Daichi’s forearm, tugging him around and kissing his forehead soundly.

“I’ll hold down the fort.” Daichi nodded and turned back towards Kuroo again, but Suga held his grip firm. “But don’t forget you fought for me. You saved me, don’t push that away, okay? Be careful.” Daichi gulped dryly and left Suga in the alley. 

…

Inhale. Exhale.

It was a simple command that was just so hard to complete.

Breathe like the incoming tide, steady and consistent, always come back.

 _Always come back._ It was an interesting concept; this idea of returning. Return to what? What was there to remember and what would be left of the ocean’s comfort? Maybe it wouldn’t be there at all. But darkness was the world, and so there was no telling what would be there now. 

Breathe like the tide kissing the shore. Maybe, just maybe, the waves would carry him home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for reading! Come find me on tumblr! Until next time,
> 
> -Daisy


	6. When the Caged Bird Can’t Sing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! 
> 
> First I am so so sorry for not updating. This story is finished so no more worries about me not updating, and I will add the final chapters over the next couple days. School, work, and my mental health got in the way, and on the side I got thoroughly distracted by Haikyuu Mafia AU's oops. So here is the next few chapters, and they are by far my favorite.
> 
> Comments make my world go round, but don't feel pressured! Thank you so much for reading!

**Chapter 6- When the Caged Bird Can’t Sing**

“Jesus, I should have gone to Shiratorizawa.” Kuroo muttered to himself, his fingernails scraping at his scalp. Daichi snorted beside him, the color in his face returning as they walked, Lev on their left, and Kiyoko on their right. Lev rambled about there not being any earthquakes in Russia, hands stuffed in his pockets. Kiyoko listened intently, keeping her gaze forward, not daring to think about  _ him _ .

She couldn’t bear to think about the pain, the darkness, the lack of warmth. She couldn’t think about what his last breath might have been like, or his last thought. It was selfish of her to think that maybe he had thought of her, but she knew he probably thought about his whole life, 16 short years, and all the things he hadn’t done.

“ _ I’ll marry you one day, Kiyoko _ .” He had been so sure.  Kiyoko swallowed the thought down harshly, choking on the saliva gathering in her mouth and blinking back the tears she refused to spill. Not now.

“Kenma!” Daichi shouted, cupping his hands around his face, calling out. The people gathered on the street, were mostly cleaning up their little store fronts, devastated by their entire lives being shaken like a snow globe in a matter of seconds. They raised their heads at the boys, curious about their story, but far too preoccupied with the ruins around them to fixate on them too long.

“Kenma!” Kuroo bellowed, as they approached the video game store, now in complete shambles. Kuroo saw the store sign, now broken in three pieces on the concrete and broke into a sprint towards the entrance. “Kenma! Kenma are you here?” 

“Why are you yelling?” A soft voice came from behind. Kuroo whipped around so fast Daichi didn’t even see him, as he threw his arms around Kenma.

“Oh fuck! I was freaking out man! I mean, I really wasn’t worried, I just had this gut feeling you were fine, but as we started looking for you I just started doubting myself and-”

“Stop talking.” Kenma whispered, pressing his face into Kuroo’s chest, his arms not hanging quite so limply at his sides like he normally would for Kuroo’s overbearing hugs. 

“Okay.” Kuroo rested his chin on Kenma’s head and inhaled a sigh of relief. 

“Why didn’t you come find us?” Lev asked, prying the boys apart. Kiyoko and Daichi stepped back watching the three of them interact, Lev’s goofiness reminding them both slightly of Tanaka in his mannerisms. Kioyko wrapped her hand around Daichi’s fingers, his skin ice cold against hers. 

“I got stuck in the back room with the store owner. To pass time we played classic gameboy. Oh and then his daughter found us and broke us out.” Kuroo latched onto him again, laughing into his hair.

“Never change Kenma.” He grinned, roping Lev into the hug too, now that his team was back together. They would be alright. Everything would be alright. The sun was high in the sky by now, the beads of sweat on their faces glistening under its rays, and their hair was shiny with grease at the top, dirt and debris, and sweat coating their skin. They all had squinted expressions against the rays, keeping their gazes on each other and lower, the sun far too bright and hot on their eyes. 

“We should head back.” Kiyoko said stiffly, suddenly longing for Noya’s presence. He was the closest thing she had to  _ him _ now, and something about leaving him there all curled up by himself was disorienting. She wanted nothing more than to hold onto him and guard him from the world.  The group nodded in agreement, and made their way through the streets, stepping over weird pieces of rubble in the road and a gentle stream of dirty water. Lev stuffed his hands in the pockets of his jacket, balancing on a slab of wood as they walked, stumbling with his lack of balance.

“Get down, you’ll get hurt.” Lev stuck his tongue out at him and continued wobbling down the slab until he did trip and stumbled off landing in the stream of water. He immediately jumped up, surprise etched on his face as he retracted from the water, staring at his hands with a weird expression.

“I told you!” Kuroo scolded him, but his expression fell flat as Lev stared at him, confusion in his eyes.

“The water just… shocked me!” Daichi furrowed his brows.

“What the hell Lev?” Kenma raised his hand to smack him in the head, but Kuroo caught his hand, shaking his head cautiously. 

“Nobody move.” Kuroo hissed, pushing them back from the water as it ran through the street. Kuroo crouched down and barely flicked the water with his index finger, before retreating with a grimace.  “We need to get back immediately. Power lines must’ve fallen in the water, and water’s a major conductor of electricity. At its source, it will kill. Lev, you’re one lucky son of a bitch right now.” Their eyes widened and there was a split second of silence exchanged between them, before they heard a scream. 

“Tadashi!” Kuroo and Daichi’s heads both snapped up, and before their brains could wrap around what was happening they were sprinting towards the noise a few blocks away. There was a crowd of people beginning to gather, watching the two boys in horror as they stood on the back of a truck, a solid inch and a half water swarming them, and with the sharp crackles of the powerlines a hundred feet away, the situation quickly became evident. Both boys were soaking wet, hair plastered to their faces, but it was clear they hadn’t touched the water lighting up with electricity.

“Tsukishima!?” Daichi called, shoving people to the side and catching Tuski’s panicked expression. His glasses were gone, and he looked beyond exhausted, as Yamaguchi held onto him.

“You guys have to jump!” Kuroo called from the side, surveying the situation for a place that they could land.

“Are you insane?! There’s no fucking way.” Tsuki folded his arms stubbornly over his chest. He glanced at Yamaguchi for reassurance, but he was now on the other side of the truck, clambering over the edge, giving Daichi a steady nod.

“Tadashi! Don’t be a fucking idiot! You'll-”

“Eat your damn fear Tsuki and jump! What other choice do we have!” With that, Tadashi spotted the curb, several feet away, Daichi violently shoving people from the clearing and nodding at Tadashi who held a stern glare. He had never seen Yamaguchi like this before, never seen him so… void of the boy he was. He looked more like a superhero in that moment, a boldness in him shaping the normally shy smile into a sharp gritting of his teeth and firm set of his jaw, eyes illuminated with intrepid determination. His freckles were lost among the specs of dirt on his face, and his sopping wet hair stuck to his forehead, wrinkled in concentration. Tsuki stepped forward to snag his wrist, but he pulled away.

For a second, Daichi wasn’t even sure it  _ was  _ Yamaguchi. The boy before him was now at all who he once was, and the realization was startling. Kuroo watched the water pop and crackle, the way it slowly gushed out of the pipelines, increasing in depth. Soon enough this water would slip over the curb, and everyone here would have no chance, Tsuki and Yamaguchi would have no chance.

“Now!” Daichi roared, holding out his arms in case he had to catch him. Tadashi heard Tsuki shout “no” from behind, but it didn’t matter now, for his feet had already left the car and for a fraction of a second he was flying. He would wonder after, if that’s what Hinata felt like, when soaring on the court. 

But then, his feet hit solid ground and there were no droplets of water prickling at his skin, in fact the only thing he felt at all were Daichi arms clutching his t-shirt as he stumbled back.

“I got you.” Daichi called, pulling away from the curb. Yamaguchi didn’t smile in relief, but he did quickly thank Daichi, before turning around to Tsuki.

“Come on Tsuki! We don’t have much time!” Tsuki made a face as if to interject, but his expression fell, staring down at the water, alive and ready to end him. Just as it had almost done before.  Almost.

Tadashi had been the one to save him. He had been ready to give up, there was no way, right? But then Yamaguchi had screamed at him, his voice cracking and full of panic, but also not lost in its sense of determination. The determination Tsuki found himself so fond of. He only wished he could be just a sliver of the person Tadashi was.  Tsuki clenched his fists, and pushed himself up onto the edge of the truck’s railing. He stared at the free spot on the curb, Yamaguchi just on the other side. He was right there. Once again, he held that determined look, and it made Tsuki falter, wondering if he had weighed Tadashi down. Maybe he was dead weight after all. Maybe he should stay in the truck and let the water engulf him. 

“Please Tsuki! I won’t lose you because of your stubborn fits!” Yamaguchi called and Tsuki wasn’t sure if it was a compliment or an insult, but he almost chuckled, realizing he didn’t care. Tadashi had changed, right before him, in a matter of hours. Or perhaps, he had always been like this, maybe it was just now did he finally have a reason to fight back. 

Tsuki leaned forward, closed his eyes, and jumped.

And just like that, his feet were back on solid ground and Tadashi’s arms were wrapped around him in a quick hug. 

“Are you guys okay?!” Daichi threw his arms around his first years, and ruffled Tsuki’s hair, despite his grunt in complaint. “Why are you guys so wet?” He pulled away, shaking out his shirt, now damp. 

“Uhh… It’s a long story.” Yamaguchi rubbed the back of his head, but Tsuki shook his head.

“He got us out. We’d be dead right now if it weren’t for Tadashi.” Daichi glanced between them curiously, but didn’t press them on the matter, their nervous shifts of gazes telling him it was a sore subject. He understood that more than anything.

“We should get you guys back. We need to stick together the best we can. We should focus on getting Bokuto next.”

“But what about Hinata? And Kageyama?” Tsuki glanced between the two captains, piecing together a general idea of who else was missing. So the great king had been crushed by the ruins.

Tsuki kicked at the ground, wondering if he would find a broken crown, or perhaps he’d find a set of crowns sitting on top of a pile of rubble, like a memorial. He hoped they were alright, but still, he couldn’t help but think about what was left of his reign. What was left of  _ them _ .

“We’ll split into two parties, but we should drop these two off. You too Kenma.” Kenma shrugged, not complaining with Kuroo’s plan and Daichi nodded, feeling an awful twist in his gut. It was strange to him that it was like Hinata had been blown right off the face of the earth. Normally he was the sun of the court, the center of the solar system in which the team normally revolved around with his blinding smile and go-get-’em attitude. And now it was like he was eclipsed by the moon. Or maybe just gone.

He so hoped he and Kageyama were alright. 

“Hey! We can help!” Yamaguchi growled, pulling Tsuki by the hand roughly alongside the others.

“It’s been 24 hours since the earthquake. You two should rest.” Kiyoko pointed out. The others grimaced at her words. It had been 24 hours since it all. It felt like a lifetime ago.

Yamaguchi opened his mouth to retort, but promptly closed it, trailing them as they headed back to the group. It was an eerily silent walk back. Kuroo kept reaching out and touching Kenma’s arm, as if to make sure he was really real, and not some transparency of him, some cruel trick of his mind. Daichi walked in silence as well, shoulder to shoulder with Kuroo, and not daring to look at Kiyoko. He was so sure he had ruined her future when he had pulled Noya out of there. He had caused this. He hadn't just ruined Tanaka’s chances, but he destroyed Noya, and now, Kiyoko.

Kiyoko kept glancing at him. She didn’t blame him. Of course she didn’t. She wanted to hold his hand, reassure him, that they would be okay, but she simply didn’t have the energy to do so. And of course Tsuki and Yamaguchi followed, breathing hard, eyelids drooping and stomachs growling. They were all such a mess. 

They rounded the corner and onto the street of where their hotel sat, approaching from the opposite side, as they had been backtracked when they found the first years. They stepped over large chunks of debris, and crunched on shards of glass, glittering like gems on the sidewalk. Kuroo watched as they twinkled in the late afternoon sun, and flinched when he felt something land in his hair. He shook it out and watched as a piece of glass, barely larger than a coin hit the ground. He bent down and picked it up, wincing when the jagged edge pierced his skin, drawing a single dot of blood. He narrowed his eyes when another piece of glass, this one much larger fell a few feet in front of him, as if the cloudless sky was crumbling. He looked up, half expecting the entire sky to be falling victim to the ruins of the earth, but it was so much worse. 

“Holy. Fuck.” He dropped the glass shard and stood, pointing to the sky. 

“What?” Daichi slammed into his back and quickly pulled away following the direction that Kuroo was pointing, the others lifting their chins to the sky.

Above them, at an unnatural angle in the sky was the top floor of the hotel, glass pane windows becoming the transparent gateway to death. And from inside, two small figures practically hanging. Kuroo’s stomach plummeted.

“That’s Bokuto and Akaashi.” Kenma filled in the blanks, his hand gripping the sleeve of Kuroo’s jacket.

“Fuck.” Tsuki bit out, staring up. The group couldn’t tear their eyes from the scene and wondered if they kept staring, if suddenly one of them would drop and they would be forced to watch them plummet towards the concrete. Daichi resisted the urge to vomit.

“Daichi? Daichi!” Daichi’s head snapped in the other direction to see Suga sprinting towards him, waving his hands and gasping for air. Suga flung his arms around him, even though Daichi’s attention was still up on Bokuto and Akaashi.

“They’re here!” Everyone glanced at him, eyebrows knitted in confusion. “Paramedics are here!”

...

Hinata’s phone was dead. It had died hours ago, even though he had tried to salvage what battery was left. Because of that, he quickly learned how disconnecting it was from the rest of the world, not seeing the sun rise or set, not knowing the time. It had to have been more than a day, maybe even two, because his stomach was roaring with hunger, and his throat throbbed from dehydration. Kageyama too, must’ve felt that way, but he didn’t voice any complaints, as he sunk deeper, giving into the pain with soft moans and hissed curses until he eventually passed out from it all. He was out cold for a couple hours and it was the worst few hours of Hinata’s life, his head pressed against Kageyama’s chest, constantly listening to his heartbeat, his own stopping with each hitched breath that Kageyama made. Hinata furrowed his eyebrows upon recognizing this little hitch. Kageyama’s leg was broken, that much was clear, but the way that he barely moved from his lying position, not even shifting to his side or sitting up, made Hinata wonder if there was more injury than Kageyama was letting on. 

When Kageyama woke up, groggy and shifting uncomfortably, his gaze was brought to Hinata, who was curled into his side, arms balled up inside his t-shirt.

“Kageyama?” Hinata lifted his head, startled by the sudden movement and pushed himself away sheepishly. But Kageyama sighed and leaned closer to Hinata’s warmth, because really, he was freezing cold.

“How long… was I-” His words were muffled by his own groans, the sound growing weaker as his body shivered with exhaustion. 

“A couple hours, I think. It’s hard to tell.” Kageyama swallowed thickly, trying to conceal the shockwaves of pain that ricocheted from bone to bone. 

“Hey,” Hinata whispered, gingerly reaching out, and pushed Kageyama’s hair from his eyes, taking notice at the subtle way he tensed and gritted his teeth at the pain. The gesture was small, and wasn’t something to be over-thought, but it made Kageyama’s head pound against his skull and his breath catch in his throat. “We’ll get out of this.”

“How can you be so positive?” Kageyama snarled under his breath, finding his optimism irritating. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to slip into a reverie that melted his inhibitions and helped escape the cold. But all that consumed his daydream was Hinata’s smile, wide and gentle. His eyes opened a moment later to watch a tear slide down Hinata’s cheek, dripping off his jaw, his smile nothing but a ghost of his past, a time before the ruins.

Kageyama scrunched his face together, and the awkward creature that he was, had absolutely no idea how to handle the situation. It was suddenly reminded that Hinata and him, they weren’t adults in the adult world, they weren’t star volleyball players that could come back from whatever wall blocked their path, they were just boys. Just boys who barely understood basic algebra, let alone understand the complexity of life. And Hinata was just a boy with a starry-eyed gaze, blown out like a candle in the darkness, only remnants of the person he was, falling like the debris above their heads. And now, tears poured down his cheeks, salty and hot, and so, so full of exhaustion. 

A caged bird couldn’t fly, that much was a fact. It could flap its wings, but it would go nowhere. It was still a bird, it still had its spirit, maybe it couldn’t be free with its soulmate, the sky, but it was still a bird nonetheless. But it was only when that caged bird stopped singing was it truly broken. 

"Don’t cry.” Kageyama whispered. He tried to push the word dumbass out at the end of his statement, but the word fell short, and he was left by Hinata, who only cried harder. “Hey. Hey, Shouyou, you’ll be okay.” Hinata shook his head and buried his chin in the collar of his shirt. Kageyama reached out, wiping away the tears with his thumb, hating seeing this side of Hinata. 

“You have to think about volleyball. Think about nationals! And playing Kenma in the trashcan showdown.” Hinata shook his head, his mop of orange hair sticking to his face. “Please. Just don’t cry.” Kageyama choked out, gripping Hinata’s shoulder tightly. 

“I’m sorry Kageyama. I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry. This is my fault, and now you’re in so much pain, and they’ll never find-” He was abruptly cut off as Kageyama pushed himself on his side with a grunt and pressed his forehead against Hinata’s. 

“Stop saying stupid things, Hinata.” Hinata choked on the saliva thick in his throat, his eyes snapping wide at the gesture and Kageyama’s warm breath tickling his skin. Kageyama failed to inhale soundly, his lungs not working quite like they were supposed to and that was scary on its own, but he ignored his own cage. He couldn’t fly, but at least he still had his spirit.

Kageyama’s hold was firm, grounding Hinata, or maybe trying to free him from his own cage. He’d do anything to see Hinata fly again, like he was one with the sky, boundless and free, and full of a radiant light. Now there was dull silence beneath the ruins, and even if the beams above them collapsed at the noise, he’d much rather have Hinata singing and laughing, then the silent breaths, full of desperation and broken attempts to remain what it once was. There was no going back now.

“Can I say one more stupid thing?” Hinata huffed out, and Kageyama glared at him, but he ignored him. 

“I never want another setter.” Hinata whispered, his cheeks flushing against the drying tears, although they still pooled in his eyes, like pieces of honey calcite dripping with warmth. 

“That is the stupidest thing you’ve ever said.” Kageyama managed a weak chuckle, gingerly reaching out to jab a finger into Hinata's ribs, making him shift under the ticklish spot. Hinata exhaled sharply, blinking slowly as he tried to steady himself. “I don’t think I’d want to set to anyone else."

“Now look who’s saying stupid things?” Hinata rasped out, another tear escaping. Kaeyama wasn’t sure why he was crying again, he just knew that he hated it, and hastily swiped it away, letting his thumb linger on Hinata’s cheekbone. He tried to decipher the thoughts going through his mind, other than the constant neon sign lit up with the word “pain” in all caps, reminding him of downtown Tokyo. His racing mind had become as chaotic as Tokyo square, with too many lights and sounds that made his stomach turn anxiously. But he stared at Hinata, and while his thoughts didn’t calm, his shoulders weren’t quite as tense and his face wasn’t so pinched. 

He realized what it was. Stability.

Hinata was stability. He was always there, hand raised in there, reliable smile and compliment at the ready and his fierce determination matching evenly with his own. Like the sky and the birds, knowing they’d be there for one another. No cages, no walls, not anymore. Hinata was his stability, and maybe that’s why he pushed him out of the way. He saw how the wall crumbled, threatening his foundation, and everything became instinct. Just like how birds knew how to fly. 

Silence enveloped them, like a cacoon of their own little world, the metamorphosis into these new beings already underway. The ruins had left them battered and broken, creating a wall between then and now, and now meant things were different. Things were different now, their dreams, their universe, their reactions to sensations and pains, and their personalities, shadowed by the ruins. 

Hinata wiggled his arms back through the arm holes of his shirt and intertwined his fingers with Kageyama’s. Things would be different now, but that didn’t mean it all had to be bad.

“Hinata?” Kageyama broke the silence, voice low and gravely. He swallowed, taking in the wide eyes half covered by a mess of ginger hair, and then glancing down at heir intertwined hands. His heart pounded ruthlessly against his chest. “I’m not very good at interpreting social situations.” The tiniest hint of smile cracked open as Hinata laughed.

The caged bird could still sing after all. 

“I know.” Hinata grinned, leaned forward and kissed him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again for reading! Until next time,
> 
> -Daisy


	7. All That was Left

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Welcome to the next chapter!
> 
> So this one is on the shorter side, but chapter 8 is super long so hand on tight. All good things to come? Well... sort of. 
> 
> Thanks for reading.

**Chapter 7- All That was Left**

Suga flipped through the magazine in his hands, skimming the advertisements, and trying his hardest to focus on the articles inside. He licked the tip of his finger and turned the page, sighing against Daichi’s back. Daichi had curled up between his legs, head pressed against his chest, eyes closed. But despite that, Suga knew he wasn’t asleep. No, when Daichi slept two things occurred; one was that the whole bed would be shaking from the sheer volume of his snoring and two was that Daichi was not a little spoon cuddler. Daichi liked to have something -or someone- in his arms, and when it wasn’t Suga, it was always an extra pillow or bunched up blankets. They were sitting up in Daichi’s bed, Suga pressed against the mountain of pillows that Daichi had so graciously shared since Suga had been discharged after an hour of quick examination. Daichi was expected to stay overnight due to fear of infection spreading in his now stitched up arm. Suga didn’t leave Daichi, he was honestly afraid to.

Suga glanced at the clock on the wall in front of their bed and sighed. It had been a whole day and a half since paramedics reached the teams. It had been over two days since the earthquake. Daichi hadn’t said a word in over 15 hours. He must’ve fallen into some sort of depressed state, by the way he blocked out the world, refused to move… refused to eat. And it worried Suga sick to see him like this, but he provided what comfort he could, resting his chin on Daichi’s shoulder and humming softly. 

Suga looked around the overly packed room, since the hospital was overflowing with patients. The room, meant to hold four, held eight members of the team and Ukai, who refused to leave any of them. Noya was in the bed across, he too dead silent, as he drifted in and out of consciousness, his hands wrapped in gauze, and a thick bandage on the side of his head. Asahi sat in the chair next to him, arm in a sling, but otherwise okay, staring blankly at the ground. He was still recovering from the panic attack he had about an hour ago, and Ukai had to drag him outside to get air, because his thrashing had threatened to worsen the damage in his arm.

Sharing the bed next to Daichi was Kiyoko and Yachi. Yachi who was seemingly fine, had actually suffered a sprained wrist and barely let out a noise of complaint. She sat on the edge of the bed, eating a candy bar Kiyoko had gotten her from the vending machine. Kiyoko sat next to her, a bandage on her own head, hair pulled back into a ponytail, her glasses missing. She looked up at Suga and knitted her brows together.

“Is Daichi asleep?” Suga shook his head.

“ _Is he okay_?” She mouthed, her head tilting to the side. Suga hesitated on the answer before shaking his head again. He wasn’t sure Daichi would be alright again. He knew nothing of what was going through his head other than it scared him. His own internal panic rising up his throat, he squeezed Daichi tighter, kissing the nape of his neck once, before throwing his head back against the pillows. Kiyoko and him simply gazed at each other for a while, in a wordless conversation, an exchange of worried looks. Suga only looked away when he saw movement. It was Noya, who without a word, got out of bed and left the room, shaking his head at Asahi who insisted on following. Suga didn’t try to think about where on earth Noya would possibly be going, so he forced himself to focus on Ennoshita, deathly pale on the fourth bed, hooked up to a thousand machines, as well as an IV bag, as the doctors heavily monitored him for infection and surrounding issues with his blood loss. He was expected to be okay, with of course, quite the recovery. Narita and Kinnoshita were on either side of the bed, playing a game of cards quietly, while Ennoshita watched, far too exhausted to join in.

Daichi sighed suddenly in Suga’s arms, twisting his head to the side, but remained still after that. 

“Daichi?” Suga whispered. Nothing.

“Hey. Babe.” Suga shook his shoulder lightly until Daichi was forced to stirr, opening his eyes cautiously, deep amber glazed over with fear. Suga’s lips traced a frown. Daichi had been crushed by the ruins. His spirit, his ability to fly, hidden beneath. There was a difference between a caged bird and a bird who had no spirit. One could fly while the other could not, but a free bird without a spirit, might as well be a dead one. Suga’s stomach twisted into knots.

“You don’t have to talk. I just want you to hear me.” Daichi blinked once, and Suga took that as a ‘yes.’ “I love you, okay? I love you so much, and the team loves you so much. No matter what Daichi. You hear me? Nothing will _ever_ change that. I hate seeing you slip away from me. Don’t do that, not to me. Not to yourself. The whole team and I, we’re here to fight for you.” Daichi didn’t say anything, just looked up at Suga as if he was the only reason his feet were still on the earth. It crushed Suga worse than any concrete wall.

“Suga-”

“THEY FOUND THEM. HOLY SHIT GUYS THEY FOUND THEM!” Noya shrieked, throwing the door open, letting it slam against the wall. Everyone’s head snapped up and stared at him. Suga opened his mouth to ask exactly who, but Noya had already left the room, sprinting down the hall. In a mess of seconds, the team had scrambled out of their beds, Suga pulling Daichi out of bed and ran down the overcrowded halls of the hospital wing towards the desk.

“Kageyama and Hinata! Where are they?!”

...

Bokuto grinned as Akaashi pushed open the door with his hip, balancing a tray in his hands as he turned. 

“Gimme Gimme Gimme!” Bokuto reached out greedily as Akaashi rested the tray in his lap, a dozen packs of strawberry Jello jiggling from the movement. “You’re the best of the best Akaashi!” Akaashi smiled softly and waited patiently for Bokuto to scoot over so that he could crawl in next to him. Boktuo was already tearing open a package, shoving his spoon into the artificial sweetness. Akaashi leaned against his shoulder, carefully picking up a jello cup, noticeably the only blue one on the tray.

“You don’t like strawberry?” Bokuto asked through a mouthful of jello.

“Don’t chew with your mouth open Bokuto-san. And no, I don’t like strawberry.” Bokuto barked out a laugh, twisting around to face Akaashi better, but ended in a cursing mess. He had almost forgotten about the gash on his hip. 

“Are you okay?” Akaashi asked, hastily putting down his jello cup, and motioning for Boukto to lift up his shirt. He did so, and blood could be seen forming through the seams of the stitches. “You have to be careful!” Bokuto nodded and repositioned himself with a grunt. They sat in relative silence for a moment their jello cups limply fitting in their hands.

They had been rescued only about 15 hours before, after another aftershock rippled through the earth and Akaashi had felt himself slip through Bokuto's grasp, and he really thought Bokuto would be the last thing he would see. But then it wasn't. First responders had gotten to them, a tangle of thick cording, and harnesses as they inched their way to the boys. Akaashi was asked to let go, and even every instinct told him not to, he let go of Bokuto, letting the responder catch him, and pull him into his chest as they were carefully brought back to solid ground. Bokuto followed quickly after, the gash in his hip worsening, until he passed out only feet from the ambulance.

Which was how they ended up here. Relatively okay, Akaashi supposed. 

“Hey Akaashi?” Bokuto broke through his thoughts.

“Yes?”

“When… we were up there, you said something about wanting to see the view for me. What did you mean?” Akaashi sighed, resting his jello container on the tray. 

“When I was there, hanging by a thread, I couldn’t help but think about everything I missed out on. It’s cliche, yes, but I found myself counting my regrets rather than the accomplishments and good memories in my past. And then you showed up.”

“And got us both stuck.” Bokuto winked.

“Yes… and no. Physically yes, but you made me rethink some things. You’re always counting the good things, always making note of the things that make you happy. And I just… It freed me in a way. Made me look at the world a little differently.” Akaashi caught Bokuto’s gaze, his golden eyes wide with awe, bursting with energy.

“You make me happy.” Bokuto stated proudly, although he lowered his tone, as if it was meant for Akaashi’s ears only. Their breath got caught in their throats, and suddenly there wasn’t a gap between them anymore as lips pressed against lips, and just like that, Akaashi could see the view, clear as day. 

“You taste like strawberry jello.” Akaashi whispered against his skin, his mouth twisting into a slight smile. Bokuto grinned from ear to ear, laughing lightly.

“I thought you didn’t like strawberry Jello?” Akaashi shook his head.

“I don’t.” He responded, before tugging the collar of Bokuto’s collar and kissing him again.

…

It had come not really as a surprise to Kageyama, although the question _why me_ came up in his head, and it was almost like Hinata could read his thoughts as he squeezed his hand harder in reassurance. In terms of romance, the kiss wasn’t romantic at all. In the darkness, Hinata had practically missed, hitting the corner of his mouth and bumping their noses. And from their position, laying on their sides, it was awkward and sloppy since neither of them had any experience. But since it was the last coherent thing he remembered, Kageyama held onto that brief moment frozen in time with every fiber of his being. 

There were other things he remembered, although the kiss had been a stabilizing sense of reality, the other flashes of memory were not. They were disconnected images and disembodied sounds that flooded his brain in a series of random occurrences that didn’t make sense. There was the feeling of lungs no longer able to support themselves, the sound of Hinata’s voice, screaming _his name_. There was pain, and then… there was light.

Then darkness.

Kageyama blinked rapidly at the surge of light that penetrated his view of sight, blinding him as he adjusted. He scrunched his nose up, a deep scent of disinfectant stinging his senses as he pushed himself deeper into the support behind him. The first thing he noticed was that the hardness of the concrete slab was no longer behind him, now replaced with a marshmallowy softness. For a moment he wondered if it had all been a dream and he was going to wake up in his bed. But his room smelled a lot less… clean. He opened his eyes, curiosity getting the best of him, and he was met with blank walls, a steady beeping beside him and faint ache in his chest and leg, that was supposed to hurt a hell of a lot more. He glanced down to see his leg, bulkier than usual under the blanket, and as he tried to wiggle his toes, he could feel the cast holding the broken pieces of his leg together. He inhaled, feeling a sharp pain on his left, realizing that his injury _had_ been more than just his leg. 

“Oh good! You’re awake.” A tired but still cheery voice called out, and Kageyama blinked again, his eyes focusing on the woman in white. She looked faintly like Kiyoko, with her dark hair cascading down her shoulders, and square glasses, that hid the deep bags under her eyes and red rimmed eye-lids. She looked exhausted.

“W-what day?” Kageyama managed to rasp out. She nodded shortly, scribbling something down on her notepad before pulling her phone out to show him the date.

“You’ve been out cold for about 15 hours now. You were rushed into surgery when you got here, so you must be exhausted. Lucky for you, everything was a success.”

“M-my leg! Will I be able to-”

“Play volleyball? Yes. Yes, you got lucky with the fracture, it will take a little time, but you’ll be back up and running soon enough. Your little orange friend was very incessant on the matter. He wanted to make sure you could… set was it? Again for him.” Kageyama went up to run his head, a migraine filling the blank spots of his memory with pain.

“Where is Hinata?” He asked groggily. She smiled softly at him, although he could tell she had been through a lot in the last two days, and he could see by the crack in the wall that the hospital had been hit too.

“He just stepped out to talk to some teammates. I’ll let him know that you’re awake.” She made some quick checks of his pulse, and blood pressure and excused herself from the room, leaving Kageyama in a brief silence, his thoughts screaming at him.

It had been three days and ten hours since the earthquake. Time felt like some figment of the imagination now, bent out of shape and not abiding to the rules of his natural, internal clock.

“Kageyama!” Hinata squealed from the doorway, knocking him from his thoughts, but before he could get a good look at him, Hinata had already thrown himself on top of him, pressing his face into Kageyama’s shoulder. Kageyama winced out in pain, making Hinata retract, as if he had just broken a fragile object. Kageyama hated the look he gave him, he _wasn’t fragile_.

“Your stupid jerk! You scared me to death!” Hinata was back to swatting him in the arm. Kageyama crunched up his face in confusion, the flashbacks to the last day blurry and unfocused. Hinata caught the expression and his expression fell as if remembering every little detail of the event.

“We were down there, and… and your breathing… it just sort of…” Hinata blew raspberries halfheartedly, as if deflating. “And then it stopped. And, and…” Tears pooled in his eyes, before quickly wiping them away to hide his emotions the best he could. “But they found you! Just in time. I really-”

“Oi Hinata! Hurry the hell up, I wanna see him too!” Nishinoya called from the doorway, stomping his foot impatiently. The doctor peered into the room with her strict one person at a time rule, that forced most of the team to line up single file down the hall. Hinata shot him a look that Kageyama could not decipher from, but the way Hinata clung to the edge of the bed in almost a sort of desperation, his hands shaky, and appearing far smaller than normal, Kageyama began to piece it together.

Perhaps they were out of the darkness, but Kageyama realized that this was just the beginning of Hinata’s cage.

Hinata stuck his tongue out at Noya, who ignored the “one person at a time” rule and burst into the room throwing himself at Kageyama, and pushing Hinata to the side. And in a line, one by one, the other members of Karasuno and Nekoma smacked Kageyama on the back, or wrapped him in a hug, Hinata watching carefully as each member was reunited, but caught Daichi hanging in the doorway, arms crossed tightly across his chest. Hinata had the sudden urge to run up and hug him, and so he did.

Their team wasn’t back yet, and maybe to some extent they all lost a little piece of themselves to the ruins, but there was still a wing spiker sized whole in their family, and a crushing weight still on their shoulders. But admittedly, it was nice to have their sun back in orbit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *sobs in BokuAka* anyway... Until next time,
> 
> -Daisy


	8. Lost and Found

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the last chapter!!!!
> 
> SO much is happening and its long chapter so hang on tight!

**Chapter 8- Lost and Found**

Four days, sixteen hours, and almost 15 minutes after the initial earthquake hit the Tokyo coast, Ryūnosuke Tanaka was found alive.

…

Saeko Tanaka screamed from inside her van, stomping on the brakes for the fifth time in the last two minutes. The traffic getting into Tokyo was bad enough, although when she looked to her left, the traffic _leaving_ Tokyo was insane. She could see the city from afar, hazy in the light blue backdrop of the sky, but even from out here she could see something off about the area.

Saeko had started driving to Tokyo around four in the morning, slipping out of the house while her parents were still asleep, or at least seemingly asleep. Her mother hadn’t really slept in days. None of them had. It was as if something had been ripped from her, maybe an essential organ, one she couldn’t leave out. 

News of the earthquake spread like wildfire, and they caught it on the news only a half an hour after it happened. Initially it hadn’t scared Saeko that much, Earthquakes happened all the time, but when the evening news came on an hour later, and she couldn’t reach Tanaka’s phone, the world came crashing down. 

_“At least 18 confirmed dead in the last two hours. Paramedics fear that the death toll will only rise as they begin search and rescue efforts.”_ Saeko had dropped the remote and screamed for her parents, all of them desperately calling Tanaka, and in a frenzy, Saeko had called Nishinoya. After nothing… The waiting game began.

It was the worst game to play. It was like a thousand glass shards piercing the surface of her skin as she paced the kitchen, feet dragging against the tile as exhaustion set in, but was overpowered by the adrenaline pumping through her veins like a toxin. 

Then the phone rang. It only took 24 hours of playing the dreaded waiting game. The horrible, horrible game that began to destroy her from the inside out. Her mother had heard the phone and froze in place, unsure of what to do. But Saeko had scrambled over the couch and snatched the homephone, pressing it to her ear.

“Hello?”

“Tanaka-san?” 

“This is her daughter, Saeko! Is this about my brother?! Is he okay?” The man on the other line was silent for a moment, and in that moment, Saeko caught a glance outside her window to see the sun beginning to set. It felt like the end of an era.

“Karasuno High School Volleyball Club was rescued about an hour ago, although there are said to be a handful of members missing.” Her heart had plummeted.

“A-and Tanaka? Ryuu Tanaka?”

“I’m sorry, miss, but he has yet to be found and by the report, we presume him to be dead. I’m very sorry. Rescue efforts are still being made, and there is always room for a miracle, but I wouldn’t get your hopes up-” Saeko didn’t hear anything else that he said. Her grip on the phone went limp, and she turned to her mother, who screamed. 

Her mother had crumbled to the ground like a building fallen victim to the earthquake. They had been victims of the ruins, and there was nothing Saeko could do.

Until she got fed up with it all. Her mother’s sobs, her father’s silence, the dreary darkness looming over the house. She was done with all of it. Which is how she found herself stuck in Tokyo traffic at ten in the morning. She wasn’t exactly sure what she was doing here, maybe to find Tanaka herself since everyone else seemed so incapable of doing it. And after two more grueling hours stuck in traffic, she finally entered the city and with that, another universe.

She refused to let the images of the city turned to rubble stay engraved in her mind, and with each collapsed building she passed, she wondered if her brother was somewhere under there. She refocused on the road in front of her, gripping the steering wheel so tightly that her hands hurt. She stepped on the brakes again as a firetruck passed through the intersection, red lights flashing, siren piercing her train of thought. Her eyes followed the truck, wondering who it was going after and suddenly rage coursed through her. Why didn’t they find him? Why did they presume Tanaka died? How could they give up? _How, how, how._

The word kept running through her head until she pulled into the overflowing parking lot of the hospital, parking half in two spots, but she really didn’t care anymore, as she slammed the car door shut and burst through the sliding glass doors.

The inside of the hospital was disorienting, her overwhelmed senses making her sway on her feet and adding to grieving nausea boiling in her stomach. There was the thick stench of blood, the deep prickling feeling of panic, heavy in the air, and there was an overwhelming amount of noise, from crying babies, to goraning patients, to the hushed whispers of doctors who chatter behind clipboards, their mumbles far deadlier than any scream of pain. There were blinding lights, and a foul smell from the lack of hygiene. Saeko wrinkled her nose and pressed her hands against the front desk, tapping her foot impatiently for the receptionist to look at her.

“Can I help you?” She remarked rudely, but Saeko let it go. The woman was probably beyond exhausted.

“Uh yes… I’m looking for-” Who was she looking for? Her brother couldn’t possibly be here, could he? She would have been notified. So why was she standing in the hospital waiting room, with no plan, and a throat that swelled shut with grief, a chest that blossomed with pain, and a migraine as her brain tried to wrap around all that had happened. 

“Ryuu… Tanaka? I’m his sister, Saeko.” The woman typed away on her keyboard.

“Sorry there’s no Tanaka in the system.”

“Oh… umm- what about… Hinata? Shouyou Hinata?” The woman eyed her, eyebrows raised.

“I’m sorry, but if you’re not related, I can’t tell-”

“BIG SIS!” Saeko’s head snapped up and from the back she could see a boy barely over five feet, waving frantically at her. 

“Yuu!” She shrieked, abandoning the woman at the desk and sprinting across the waiting room, ignoring the receptionist hollering at her to stop. Saeko collided with Noya, half crying, half laughing hysterically as she gathered him in his arms and picked him off the ground.

“Miss! You cannot-” The receptionist roared, stomping over to them.

“No! Saeko’s my sister!” The receptionist stopped, looking Noya and Saeko up and down as if trying to look for some kind of uncanny resemblance that should have made them siblings. Saeko glanced at Noya, who eyed her carefully, his fib spilling out of his mouth with ease. 

“Yeah! Why would I lie about who she is? I missed you so much big sis!” He cried out, pulling her into another hug, both as an extra point to aid in his lie and as the truth. The receptionist sighed, and turned away, pinching the bridge of her nose.

“Visiting hours are limited. If you two are to talk, please do so in our recreational facility.” She said begrudgingly, before returning to her seat. Saeko and Noya exchanged a careful look before Noya grabbed her hand and tugged her down a maze of hallways towards a cafeteria. Saeko took the time then to take Noya in, his smaller frame, not exactly helping his ghostly complexion, exhausted features and forced smile that felt like he was forcing the universe to tear in two just for the effort. His hair was a complete mess, missing of hair hair gel, but still standing up at odd angles. His hands were wrapped in gauze and the side of his head had four stitches, the dark color standing out against his skin. When they sat down, Saeko could see the slight dilation difference in his eyes. He held his head heavily in his hands, trying to hide the squint of his eyes from the harsh lighting in the cafe. 

“Saeko, I-”

“Are you okay?” She asked, uncharacteristically quiet and avoiding the conversation she would no doubt have to face soon enough. She wasn’t ready for that, not yet. Noya hesitated a while on his answer, before settling on a slight nod. He looked up and down at himself, proving he was not injured beyond a minor concussion and his obviously wrapped up hands. She nodded back, not really satisfied with the answer, but she hadn’t expected anything else. They both shifted uncomfortably in their seats, Noya choosing to clear his throat to chase off the dreaded silence.

“How about the others? Spunky little Hinata? Our manly ace? Cap. Daichi and his angelic co-cap? They all okay?” She tried to lighten the mood with the goofy little nicknames, but it did nothing, especially by the way his face darkened at Daichi’s name.

“We’re all… Hinata’s still himself… he’s more clingy than usual, but he and Kageyama were trapped for almost three days. They’ve uh- gotten close.” 

“I always knew they would! Hinata just radiates love for Kageyama all the time!” She cut herself off, waiting for Noya to continue.

“Asahi… he’s gonna be okay. He’s having panic attacks. I mean it's not really unusual, but they’re worse than before. Suga’s fine, he’s kinda the glue holding us together right now.” Saeko furrowed her eyebrows. Normally that role was fulfilled by Daichi. “And Daichi… It’s… I- oh it's my fault. It’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have screamed at him, or kicked him, I should have-”

“Yuu, you’re not making sense. What happened?” His bottom lip trembled.

“I tried to… I tried but I couldn’t and, and Daichi pulled me out. He saved me, but w-w-we… we couldn’t save him! And I hate him. I hated him, I hated him, I hated him. I screamed and kicked and hit and he just took it all! I-” His voice went soft. “I think I broke him.” He looked up at her, entire oceans filling his eyes, salty and hot and drowning him.

“Saeko... Tanakas’-”

“I know. They called the house.” She could barely gather the words in the back of her throat, but somehow managed to push them out. Noya stared at her, those normally bolting with energy and a fierce determination, swiftly crushed between the tectonic plates of fate. Fate seemed to be throwing them quite the curveball on this day. Saeko looked at Noya and to her own horror saw Ryuu, the same energy, the same powerful voice, the same spirit. 

She also saw how just like Ryuu, Noya’s spirit was dying out like a silent ember, fluttering towards a land filled of ash.

“I couldn’t save him.” He whispered, voice breaking into glass shards. He squeezed his eyes shut, finding that the glass windows that let the sunlight filter in made his brain swell. It was so unbearably bright out there, with a gorgeous clear sky, not a raindrop in sight. Saeko reached across the table and pulled his hands away from his face, gripping his fingers in the palm of her hands, as if trying to warm them. He sniffled, ripping his gaze from her.

“Hey. Hey, don’t blame yourself. We’ll find him.” She paused, moving to hold his wrists in her hands. “You hear me? We’ll find him. One way or another, we won’t let him be lost. We won’t leave our brother behind.” Noya let out a sob, slamming his hand over his mouth and squeezed his eyes shut.

“I’m sorry!” He choked out, looking up to find her already out of her seat, and kneeling at his side wrapping him in another hug, pressing her face into his wild hair to hide her own tears.

“I’m sorry too, Yuu.” 

…

Light.

Then Dark.

Then… light again? Had the tide come to save him? Or had his breath finally given up, letting the last of his soul be carried away with the wind, and now there was nothing left? There was no movement, at least he didn’t think so, and his body felt at ease, calm like the waves, and he wondered if he was completely submerged. There were no sounds, nothing to see, no smells, just… nothing.

He closed his eyes, slipping away for what was there left to do?

But faintly. Faintly, he heard something. Or at least he thought he did. It was hazy and distantly familiar, but he wondered if the name could take flight again.

…

“I win!” 

“Bullshit you do! _You_ cheated.”

“Did not!”

“Did to!” Bokuto tossed the cards at the ground and lunged forward, ignoring the tear in his side as he wrestled Kuroo to the ground, smacking each other in the arms and chest, Bokuto even biting Kuroo’s shoulder, to which Kuroo responded with a sharp smack to the thigh. Akaashi and Kenma sat on the hospital bed, Kenma sucked into his phone, which he had managed to find a charger for, and Akaashi was watching over his shoulder, bored of Kuroo and Bokuto’s antics, although he did enjoy seeing Bokuto smile.

“Did you just fucking bite me?”

“You slapped my thigh! That’s an Akaashi only zone my dude.” Kuroo paused, staring up at Bokuto who had him pinned. He raised an eyebrow and grinned.

“Oh yeah?” Bokuto clamped his mouth shut, glancing up at Akaashi, who was paying very close attention to the two captains now, his cheeks flushed.

“Yeah. You gotta problem with that?” Bokuto huffed out. Kuroo snorted, wiggled out from underneath him, then smacked Bokuto clean on the ass.

“Yeah! If you make anyone other than me the best man at the wedding, I’ll kill you!” Bokuto jumped to his feet, roaring with laughter as he clapped Kuroo on the back, the two of them laughing and calling each other names. Just like old times. Akaashi hid his face from view from the intensity of his flushed face, but it only worsened as Bokuto grabbed his hands, dancing around the hospital room, laughing and singing some inchorent song. Despite all that had happened he just appeared so genuinely… happy. 

“Come on Kenma!” Kuroo cooed, tossing the phone to the side and dragging him out, to dance along to Bokuto’s made up song, that turned into some cheesy American pop song that he liked. The four of them bounced around the room- well mostly Bokuto and Kuroo, before Kenma managed to duck out of the room, saying that he was hungry, and with a firm smack in the head, Kuroo quickly bid Bokuto goodbye before following his setter.

“Dance with me?” His face lit up like a child on Christmas morning, as he bowed, holding out his hand.

“You best not. You’ll rip out your stitches.” Bokuto stood straight and wrapped a strong arm around Akaashi’s waist. Akaashi felt his breath hitch in his throat, an unnatural response- he concluded and it scared him, how absolutely vulnerable he allowed himself to be next to Bokuto. They stood close together, noses just inches apart, and Akaashi got so lost in those wide eyes, dripping golden sunrises, that he barely comprehend that he had wrapped his arms around his neck. Bokuto hummed in response, rocking back and forth gently.

“What are you doing?” Akaashi raised an eyebrow as Bokuto continued to sway, humming some distant tune.

“Dancing, ‘kaashi, what else?”

“To what?”

“Does it matter? I’m making up for lost time.” Akaashi tilted his head, but didn’t have time to come up with a response, as Bokuto swung him around gently, letting out a light chuckle and smiling so brightly, it rivaled the sun. Akaashi fell back into his grasp and then he was swaying too, closing his eyes, because as much as he was afraid he was missing the view, it was the warmth that radiated off Bokuto that he wanted to take in, to feel spread through every bone his body, feel the skin on skin contact and let it start wildfires against his nerves.

He felt Bokuto press his forehead to his own, gel-less hair tickling his temple. Bokuto was still humming, and when Akaashi leaned in, he realized what the song was. _Dust in the Wind_ , by an American group, Kansas. The only reason he knew the song was because Bokuto had gone through a classic rock phase where all he listened to were 70s and 80s rock made popular in the United States.

_Now, don't hang on_

_Nothin' lasts forever but the earth and sky_

_It slips away_

_And all your money won't another minute buy_

_Dust in the wind_

_All we are is dust in the wind_

Bokuto mumbled the words, some incoherent as he forgot the English translation, and looked at Akaashi, watching the way his lips tilted into the subtlest smile. He winced slightly in his movements. Akaashi caught it, removing his arm and gingerly lifting Bokuto’s shirt to see the stitches pulling at his skin, blood forming little dots across the tear of flesh. Bokuto let out a sheepish laugh, pushing Akaashi’s hand away, trying to reassure him it was no big deal.

“Just keep dancing, Akaashi.” He said with a smile, but something about it wasn’t as bright as before, like a star fading at the first light of daybreak. Akaashi held him tighter, trying to read the expression in Bokuto’s eyes, but found they simply reflected his own face. “Bokuto-san? Why-?” Bokuto leaned in, smile fading.

“I’m taking in all the happy moments I can get.” Something about the way he said that sent shivers down Akaashi’s spine. It was an innocent statement, one meant to be taken whole-heartedly and fill Akaashi with happiness, but it didn’t. It filled Akaashi with dread, as if the journey ahead, the path back down the mountain side would be a treacherous one. Akaashi gripped Bokuto’s hands tighter, afraid that he might fall if he let go.

...

Saeko sat on the end of a couch in the lounge, Noya’s head in her lap as he flipped through the manga she had bought him. He clearly had a concussion and he could only read a page or two at a time before closing his eyes and resting for a few minutes. The two were silent, Saeko wishing her brother was here to fill that silence with his obnoxious laugh and animated expressions. Noya was far too quiet for her liking, but she took what she could get, carding her fingers through his hair, reading along with the book he held.

He suddenly arched his neck, looking up at her, curiously. He watched her for a moment, his eyes still red, until she noticed.

“You and Ryuu have the same nose.” He stated very matter-of-factly. She smiled for the first time in days.

“There's this little thing called genetics.” She jabbed, poking him in the ribs, making him laugh. There he was. Just the piece of him, but she would take it for now. 

“Excuse me… are you Tanaka? Saeko Tanaka?” A man in a lab coat asked as he approached the couch on the edge of the lounge. Their heads snapped up in alarm, Noya’s laugh disintegrating into nothing and their smiles fading away into dust. 

“Umm, yes.” She answered slowly, as Noya closed his book.

“Earlier when you came in, you asked about Tanaka? Ryuu Tanaka?” She bit her lip and nodded. “He was found. They found him alive. Weak, but he’s in surgery now. I can call your family, or-” Noya erupted.

“Holy shit! Alive! He’s alive!” Noya bounced up, shrieking with excitement, shaking the doctor’s hand wildly before throwing his whole weight into Saeko who was still processing it all. 

“He’s… He’s alive.” She whispered, tears spilling over and dripping off the edge of her chin. “Ryuu’s alive! My baby bro’s gonna be okay! Noya, it’s gonna be okay!” She laughed and cried all at once, adrenaline coursing through her to where her whole body trembled.

“When can we see him?!”

“It's going to be quite some time. He has numerous injuries, most urgent of them, being the bleeding in his lungs, and surgeries like that can take hours. As much as I wish the best for him, there is still a high chance his body may not be able to fight it.”

“No! Ryuu’s a fighter! He’ll make it.” The doctor tried to offer a smile at the determination flourishing in the boy, but the false sense of hope was a dangerous thing to have. Saeko seemed to catch the doctor’s expression, and nodded softly, taking Noya by the shoulders to try and calm him. The doctor left them after that, a mess of questions still running through her head, fear still pumping through her veins, but the tiniest sliver of hope beating with the rhythm of her heart.

“Oh… Saeko.” She shot Noya a look, seeing his expression falling into a guilty bite of his lip. “We need to tell the others… and Daichi.”

…

Noya was forever dreading this conversation. Relief flooded through him after hearing about Tanaka’s “miracle,” but the conversation with Daichi particularly, was going to be a hard one. Noya had been hell-bent on destroying him after he had gone back to save Suga. He had the right to be, how dare Daichi value his boyfriend’s life over Tanaka’s but really, Noya knew that wasn’t true. There had just been so many overwhelming emotions all at once and he took it all out on Daichi.

He wondered if Daichi could forgive him.

But more importantly, Noya wondered if Daichi could forgive himself.

The climb up the stairwell towards their rooms was along one, Noya dragged his feet the entire time, and it felt like his throbbing of his head intensified with each step. He should really lie down. Once he made it to their room, Saeko waved him on, as she pressed her phone to her ear, impatiently waiting for her mother to pick up. Apprehensively, Noya pushed open the door, the rest of the team, as well as half of Nekoma stuffed inside. Everyone turned to look at him, wondering where he had been the last two hours.

“Noya, where have you been?” Suga asked finally, concern lacing his words. Noya rubbed the back of his head, feeling an awful pang smack him in the back of the skull as he stared hazily at the bright lights.

“Can I talk to Daichi? Alone?” Everyone exchanged nervous glances, knowing exactly what had gone down not four days before, and how the two had not so much as looked at each other since. Daichi, who was sitting in the chair at the far end of the room, silent and staring out the window turned his head. Wiping his hands on his track pants he stood with a solemn nod, and followed Noya outside.

“Noya, I-”

“He’s alive.” Noya squeezed out, cutting him off. Daichi took a long pause to process it all, before his eyes widened.

“He’s-”

“Tanaka’s alive, Daichi. They got him out. He’s alive and Daichi I’m-” It was Daichi’s turn to cut him off, roughly tugging Noya into a hug, squeezing his eyes shut so hard it hurt, and tears still spilled over, fragile and sharp, reflecting the hospital lights like stars. It was the first real emotion Noya had seen on Daichi’s face since they got to the hospital, but it wasn’t a reassuring one, by the way his face contorted still, as if something had still died. Noya just couldn’t put his finger on what yet.

“I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry. Noya I don’t deserve-”

“No Daichi, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have hit you. You were just trying to fight for who you could.” Daichi squeezed him harder, as if trying to absorb his words, his spirit, to make himself feel something other than guilt, crushing him like a freight train running him clean over. He wanted to feel something, anything other than that. 

Not that he felt he deserved anything more. Daichi pulled away sheepishly, and Noya scrutinized him, seeing what once was a strong wall, their foundation, seemed to cower. 

The name “Daichi” meant earth and land. Noya wondered, if maybe that’s why Daichi was crumbling too.

“Let’s tell the others.” He wiped his face, nodding.

“Kiyoko especially.” Daichi mumbled, the guilt clouding over his eyes in an eerie haze.

“Why Kiyoko especially?” The color drained from Daichi’s face. So Noya didn’t know? Didn’t the two boys tell each other everything? He shook away the thought and ignored Noya’s question, shoving him back inside the room.

“What happened?” Suga jumped to his feet the second he saw the tear streaks still evident on Daichi’s cheeks. He rushed over to him, checking him over for any forming bruises if Noya had hit him again, and then looked at his eyes, the emptiness that corrupted his irises retreating for a moment. Daichi didn’t smile, but he looked relieved. He looked back at Noya, who grinned, wide and blinding.

“Tanaka’s alive.”

…

Hinata pressed himself deeper under the blankets, inhaling Kageyama’s scent and letting him cocoon him. It was another round of the waiting game, and once news spread about Tanaka, the boys had busied themselves to prepare for what might come next. Noya harassed the nurses into releasing information on Tanaka’s status, Ennoshita told funny stories about Tanaka in middle school to Nekoma, trying to lighten the mood, for there was a darkness looming over them, keeping their hopes from growing too high. Hinata had taken a different approach. He chose to hide, to bury himself in warmth and live an ignorantly blissful afternoon, because if Tanaka didn’t make it, then he didn’t want to face it.

“Hey Tobio?” A shiver ran down Kageyama’s spine upon hearing his name. They had yet to talk about what had happened over the last few days, but Hinata had taken to calling him Tobio rather recently, and the unfamiliarity of it, oddly enough, filled him with a swelling pride.

“You should be asleep dumbass.” Kageyama growled. It had grown late into the evening, still without an update on Tanaka. He winced, wondering how much damage had been done, and just how much even the doctors couldn’t fix. But he had somehow persuaded Hinata to lay down next to him, as he had taken up doing cartwheels down the hall until he was yelled at, but now he curled into Kageyama’s bed, careful of his broken ribs, and pressed his face into the mattress.

“But I can’t.” Hinata whined. “I just want to know something.” Kageyama sighed, pulling his good leg up so that he could rest his book against his knee.

“What do you want to know?” He huffed out, not making eye contact.

“When did you know?” Hinata raised his head, his wild hair flopping in his face.

“Know what?” Kageyama knitted his eyebrows together, shutting the book, its contents forgotten.

“That if given the chance, you’d want to kiss me?” Kageyama hadn’t thought about it before.

“Who says I ever wanted to kiss you?” Kageyama smirked, and Hinata balled up his fist and socked him in the shoulder. Hinata pouted like a child, waiting impatiently for him to get on with it. But Kageyama really hadn’t thought of it before. There had been a time when he hated Hinata, where he felt like Pluto in a solar system where he was shadowed by the sun. Then over time, despite it always being Hinata, Hinata made him feel like the sun. 

“You tell me.”

“No way, I asked you first!” Kageyama took a breath, wondering if he could explain it just like that, without any of the ridiculous sound effects that Hinata somehow called “language.” Hinata uncoiled himself a little, to reach under the thin hospital sheet and find his hand.

“I don’t think there ever was a moment where I thought that specifically. I think… I think at some point I just began to realize that I wanted to be in your solar system.” He stated it like a fact, like it was obvious. And Hinata nodded, as if the earth had begun to revolve again. “Okay dumbass, now you go.” Hinata thought for a moment, which made Kageyama roll his eyes.

“Umm… I don’t know.”

“You’re the one who asked the question!” 

“Can I kiss you right now?” Hinata asked out of the blue, and by their expression reflecting each other, Hinata was surprised by his own question too. Kageyama answered by roughly tugging him up by the collar of his shirt, and sealing the space between them. It only took Hinata a fraction of a second to respond, as enthusiastic as ever, as he held Kageyama’s face between his hands.

“Who am I to you?” Kageyama asked breathlessly, his features relaxed. One might even say slightly daze as if he was wandering in dream land. Hinata smiled brightly at him, and even in the low evening light outside, the sun still shone. 

“A pain in my ass” Hinata replied smugly, kissing the corner of his mouth. “But you’re _my_ pain in the ass.”

…

When Ukai was called out into the hallway by a doctor with short black hair and a pair of thick glasses, the entire room went silent. Everyone from Karasuno, who had squeezed themselves into one room, stared at the doorway, boring holes through the wooden door, trying to listen to any keywords. But there was nothing, except from the beeping of Ennoshita’s machines, and Noya’s ragged breath. The night had swallowed them whole, the stars twinkling above, laughing at Daichi still, the voices in the back of head screaming. 

“Is this about Tanaka?” Yachi whispered to Kiyoko who had gone rigid next to her. Kiyoko had her hair braided in elaborated styles, from both Hinata and Yachi, who had been bored. Apparently, Hinata was quite the master braider- thanks to his little sister he pointed out as Kageyama poked fun at him. Kiyoko shrugged, pigtail braids moving with her shoulders.

Suga held Daichi’s hand a few feet away, where Daichi had returned to his stoic state, almost void of emotion and stiff in his mannerisms. Suga tried to anchor him, to keep the tide from pulling him from shore, but he wondered if he was too late. He squeezed harder still, hoping he could reel him back.

This was the hardest part of the waiting game. The last few seconds were dangerous in the way the mind flew in different directions, twisting reality and allowing anxiety to creep in. Saeko had begun to understand this as she stood in the room with them, feeling out of place, wondering all the things that could happen in the next five minutes. Or maybe it would take ten. Or maybe an hour. She hated not knowing, but that was just another rule of the god awful game she had no choice but to play.

The clock ticked softly on the wall, in the same rhythm in that the stars laughed, and with each tick, it tore a piece of themselves out, in an excruciatingly painful wait. But then Ukai came in. He looked grim… but not broken.

“I’m sure all of you would like an update on Ryuu Tanaka.” Their eyes widened, but they were all too afraid to speak. “He just got out of surgery. It’s going to be a long, long fight, and not without the possibility of complications or setbacks, but they think he just might be okay.” Saeko gasped, a relieving sob escaping her, and within seconds arms were thrown around her, realizing it was Noya and Hinata, both of them crying happy, exhausted tears.

“Saeko, I’m sure you’d like to see your brother.” Her lips trembled as she smiled, nodding frantically as Ukai pulled her from the room.

“Hey! Hey, I wanna see him! Let me see him!” Ukai turned around and held up a hand in front of Noya.

“Nishinoya, I know you want to see him. I get it, but there are strict family only policies, and Tanaka is at the very beginning of his recovery. He can only take so much at a time.” Noya furrowed his brows, shaking his head furiously. “I will see what I can do, but for now, you need to stay put.” Nishinoya was certainly not satisfied with the answer as he folded his arms stubbornly over his chest, but he stood frozen at the door, watching the doctor and Ukai led Saeko down the hall.

When the doctor stopped, Saeko and Ukai’s hearts might as well have stopped with them. There was no way of preparing to see Tanaka whatever state he might be in, but Saeko quite frankly, didn’t care. She just wanted to see him and hear his laugh, see that they really did have the same nose. The doctor was saying things, and Saeko was nodding along, but she wasn’t listening. She stared at the door in front of her, knowing he was just beyond that stupid, stupid wall that separated them. But finally, the doctor twisted the know and pushed open the door, allowing Saeko to step inside.

Tanaka was in a bed. There were machines everywhere, needles and tubes poking and prodding him, and his eyes were closed.

“Ryuu? Hey, hey it’s me.” Tanaka heard the name, it was faint, but he heard it. This time, he had control over his body, at least a little bit and he cracked open an eyelid, eyes unfocused and hazy, as if the whole world had been thrown upside down. 

“...mm- S-s-aeko?” Tears were pouring down her face, but she didn’t realize it. She was so worried he would never hear his voice again.

“Hey dipshit.” She sat on the edge of his bed, finding his hand and squeezing gently. “You scared the shit out of me. Out of all of us.” He tried to smile, but it was clear he had no strength left to make the expression.

“I scared myself.” She made a noise, somewhere between a laugh and a helpless sob and squeezed his hand.

“Yeah, I bet you did. Mom and Dad are on their way. They'll be here in an hour or so, okay? You’ll be just fine, and we’ll take you out of this godforsaken city, and take you home where I can properly annoy the shit out of you. It’ll be fine.” She wasn’t sure who she was trying to reassure, him or herself. He looked awful, she had expected as much, but seeing the real thing was gut wrenching. His eyes were filled with so much pain, struggling to keep open, his face was battered with deep bruises, especially around the eyes, and she assumed his body was worse. There was a gash on his collarbone, it would leave a little scar, and of course there was the massive line of stitches, running up his chest like a trench ripped in two by the earth. His ribs were wrapped up, his wrist was too, and in contrast to the gauze, his skin almost matched the color, drained of his usual vibrancy.

Tanaka nodded stiffly and tried to shift to a more comfortable position, but found that he simply couldn’t. He was just so tired.

“..N-Noya” He whispered, barely audible to anyone beyond Saeko. She sniffled, and nodded with a weak smile.

“He’s okay. They’re all okay. Worried sick about you, but okay. He absolutely refused to give up on you.” She brushed her fingers over his buzzcut, wiping the dirt and debris still staining his skin. “You’re a real pain in my ass, you know that? Going around pulling crap like that? You’re lucky you're as hurt as you are, or I’d beat your ass.” This time he managed a smile. “Yuu’s gonna beat your ass too, the second he can see you” His smile faded, and his brows knit together in confusion.

“I want to-”

“You can’t see him yet.” She responded, already knowing what he was going to ask. “The doctor’s say family only.” He wrinkled his nose.

“Bullshit.” He grumbled, making Saeko chuckle. She leaned in and kissed his forehead, seeing how even just the lightest touch made him wince. 

“Maybe I can try and sneak him in. Us Tanaka’s aren’t exactly rule followers.” He closed his eyes, nodding his head, before slipping into unconsciousness. He was so out of character, and it was painful to watch, but Saeko sat with him for the next several hours, just holding his hand, and when their parents arrived, only then did she leave his side. The Tanaka’s spent the night at the hospital, above the ruins, but still picking up the broken pieces left behind.

...

Within those hours, the other parents began to show up too, Asahi’s parents, Yachi’s mother, and most of Nekoma went home that night. Ennoshita was forced to stay, and so was Yaku, who’s concussion had been so bad, he was unable to move.

Bokuto and Akaashi went home together, after Akaashi’s mother found it impossible to separate the two of them, and allowed Bokuto to spend the night. And an hour after they went home, so did Tsuki and then Yamaguchi, who had protested, wanting to stay with the rest of the team, but a strict order to go home from Ukai sent him on his way. 

Hinata’s mother also showed up, a sleeping Natsu in her arms. 

“Mom!” Hinata cried, scrambling over Kageyama’s broken leg and out of bed to hug her. Natsu was jolted awake and immediately wrapped her small hands around her brother. His mother peppered kisses all over his head, tears of relief sliding down her cheeks as she held him.

“Nii-chan! I missed you.” Hinata lifted Natsu off the floor, as he enveloped her in a hug.

“I missed you too! I’m okay though, so you don’t have to worry.” Natsu nodded into his shoulder before catching Kageyama sitting up in bed. She giggled, and pushed away from Hinata, going over to stand at the edge of the bed.

“What happened to your leg?” She asked curiously, pointing at his cast.

“Natsu! Don’t ask people-”

“A big wall fell on me. But it’ll be okay.” Natsu frowned and leaned forward, kissing the cast.

“It’ll be all better now. Kisses make the boo-boo’s go away.” She patted his cast gently, and Kageyama bowed his head towards her in a thanks, before Hinata swept her off the ground and plopped her bed next to Kageyama, and crawled in too.

“Shouyou, don’t crowd the poor boy! Give him some space.”

“No way, Kageyama luuuvvs cuddles!” Hinata cracked a grin, squeezing Kageyama’s cheeks. Natsu giggled and latched onto Kaeyama’s arm, following her brother’s antics.

“Dumba- Uhh… Hinata, if you don’t let go, I’m not going to toss to you ever again.” Hinata didn’t let go, if anything, it made him want to wrap his whole body around Kageyama who was unfortunately restricted because of his cast. He tried to squirm out of Hinata’s grasp but quickly gave up, letting his body be sacrificed to the Hinata siblings, who hugged him like there was no tomorrow.

“Tobio, are your parents here? The doctors said that you could go home now, I’m sure you’re dying to sleep in your own bed.” It was true. Kageyama couldn’t wait to curl up in his own blankets, and his own pillow, and fall asleep in the familiar dip of his old mattress. But then again, he wouldn’t have Hinata.

Hinata let go, chewing on his lip as turned back to his mom.

“Kageyama’s par-” Kageyama shot him a look that both said “shut the hell up,” and “let me say it.”

“My parents aren’t in the country. They’re both in Taiwan on business trips. I contacted them yesterday. They won’t be home for another four days.” Hinata’s mom looked affronted by his words, and for such a short woman, he imagined she had quite the temper, by the way her whole face reddened to match her ginger hair, and she looked as if she might snap.

“Sweetie, what were you planning on doing until then?” She asked, letting her anger subside, for the sake of the setter her boy never stopped talking about. Kageyama shrugged, he hadn’t really thought about it, nor did he really care to. “Well in that case, you’re coming home with us.” Hinata’s eyes widened in excitement as his jaw dropped open. “You can have Shouyou’s bed, and he can sleep on the futon.” Hinata’s jaw promptly snapped shut in disapproval.

“Oh don’t make that face Shouyou, Tobio’s injured, you are not.”

“Hinata-san, you don’t-”

“Shush! I don’t want to hear a noise of disagreement from you. You two gather what you have, we’ll leave in an hour.”

…

Somehow, Hinata’s mother managed to gather both the boys, and Natsu, diplomatically tell Kageyama’s parents that they could fuck off, before checking the meds that Kageyama had been given and shoving them all in the car. It was a little after one in the morning, and normally the hospital wouldn’t have discharged them until the next day, but they were so overwhelmed and the second Kageyama left his place, another person filled the bed, so an exception was made.

Hinata let Kageyama have the passenger seat where he could sit with his leg outstretched and have the seat leaned back to support it healing ribs, and within 30 minutes Kageyama was out cold. In the back seat, Hinata stared out the window as he absentmindedly braided Natsu’s hair as she laid in his lap, babbling on about how Kageyama was going to be her new brother, and that she needed to paint his hair orange so he would match.

“Hey mom?” Hinata whispered out of the blue, about an hour away from their little home and the bed he missed so much- and wouldn’t be able to sleep in. _You stupid jerk, Bakeyama!_ She hummed in response, looking up in the rear-view mirror.

“Say… a co-worker of yours, said that he was dating this really good looking guy. How would you feel about that?” He tapped his foot nervously, glancing at her position of hands on the steering wheel.

“Well… I would tell him that nothing changes in our relationship, and that as long as he’s happy, that’s all that matters.” Hinata’s mouth shaped an ‘o’ as he casted his gaze downward, a subtle smile playing on his lips. “Can I ask what sparked the question?” She knew, she had always known. 

“Oh… Uhh, Daichi and Suga are dating! Did I tell you?” Yes, only about a thousand times did Shouyou ramble on about how cute their relationship was to his mother.

“I don’t believe you have.”

The conversation drifted off after that and it wasn’t until they pulled into the driveway did Kageyama wake up and hobble out of the car with his crutches, Hinata trying to hold his hand, but finding that one can not hold their boyfriends hand when they need them to stand upright on a pair of crutches. Hinata’s mom carried Natsu into the house, excusing herself to put the sleeping girl to bed and Hinata sprinted down the hallway to his bed, sticking his tongue out at Kageyama, declaring he had won the race. You can imagine the sharp smack on the back of the head he received.

Hinata had never thrown a pair of sweatpants on so quickly in his life, tearing off his disgusting, unwashed clothes and crawling into a t-shirt Bokuto had bought him at their last training camp and ripped back the blankets of his bed. He scowled, thinking how he wasn’t able to sleep in his own damn bed. But then he turned back to Kageyama who stood awkwardly in the center of the room and he realized he could technically sleep in his own bed, if Kageyama was compliant with it.

“Why are you standing around looking like an idiot?” Hinata snarked, but Kageyama simply looked up at him, unsure of what to do or say. 

“Hold on, I have a t-shirt and shorts you can borrow.” Hinata said, digging around in his drawers.

“How in the hell do you think I’ll be able to fit- are those mine?!” Hinata smiled sheepishly, holding up a pair of clean gym shorts.

“Yeah. You left them here after practice like forever ago. I washed them for you and was going to give them back, but I kept forgetting.” He said with a shrug, tossing the clean clothes on the bed. Kageyama fought the urge to smile just the tiniest bit, and hobbled his way towards the bed.

“You change, I’m gonna go brush my teeth for the first time in days!” He declared, pointing a finger in the air. Kageyama scowled.

_“And I was kissing that mouth.”_ He growled to himself as he collapsed on the edge of the bed, propping his crutches against the wall. He sighed deeply and tugged off his shirt, wincing at the dull ripples of pain running up and down his chest. Kageyama pulled on the clean shirt and then got to work trying to pull off his pants… it was… a lot easier said than done. The fabric kept getting caught on the of the cast and he couldn’t bend down without his ribcage screaming in distress, and by the time he managed to work them over his tailbone and slide them to his knees, he was out of breath. He cursed under his breath, eyeing the closed door, hoping Hinata wouldn’t parade through the doorway in the next 15 seconds.

But the universe just loved to test him.

“Hey, Bakeyama, let’s- What’s taking you so long?” Kageyama scowled at him.

“Well I’m sorry that such simple tasks are hard right now, and I-”

“Tobio, it’s okay. I’ll help.” Kageyama let out a noise of protest, but he was blushing furiously as Hinata kneeled in front of him, and pulled his shorts over his ankles. He bit his lip so hard, it hurt, but he was sitting there frozen, because this was _not how this was supposed to go_. Hinata must’ve caught it, because he smiled softly, throwing the old pair of shorts across the room.

“This isn’t how I imagined this going-” Kageyama reached behind him and shoved a pillow in his face. “Hey! I’m trying to help.”

“Not with those shitty comments you’re not!” He blushed even worse, for even at the best of times he hated asking for help, especially if it was Hinata.

“Okay, okay, I’ll _stop_.” He reached for the clean pair of shorts and tugged them over his ankles, pulling it up his cast until the waistband was at his thighs and he could manage to finish himself. Hinata stood with Kageyama, letting him lean his weight on his arm as he pulled the shorts on all the way and sighed in relief when that was over. He flopped back down on the bed.

“Just think! We’ll have to do that all over again tomorrow.” Hinata wiggled his eyebrows and bit his lip, trying to keep himself from giggling, as Kageyama sent him the dirtiest look.

“I hate you.”

“No you don’t” Hinata responded in a sing-song tone, crawling into bed and collapsing into the pillow. “Come on, dummy.” Reluctantly, Kageyama shifted so that he was laying down, and reached out to shut off the low lighting lamp on the desk next to the bed.

“Wait- Don’t.” Hinata whispered, his expression suddenly turning very solemn. Kageyama, normally would have poked fun at him but he didn’t have the strength, and secretly, he didn’t want the light off either. He had had enough time spent laying in the darkness.

Slowly, he adjusted himself on his side, facing Hinata, who had pulled the blankets up to his chin. 

“I’m gonna sleep for the next thousand years.” Hinata whispered, closing his eyes.

“Then stop talking and do that.” Kageyama shot back, closing his own eyes, quickly being lulled to sleep by Hinata’s steady breath.

It turned out, Hinata moved a lot in the night, making it not the most restful of sleeps. There was a lot of “Kageyama your butt’s touching mine, move over!” and “Hinata, move your boney ass elbows,” but it was better than sleeping alone in the dark, waiting to be caught and caged in the nightmare plaguing the back of their imaginations.

...

Kuroo loved seeing the sunrise. He was an early riser at heart, and greeting the sun was always the best part of his day… well maybe next to walking with Kenma to school every morning. But he always made sure to greet the sun, like it wouldn’t come back the next day, to savor the moments of golden light. Bokuto always said those morning hours were the ethereal hours, and Kuroo for one, could not disagree.

But he did not see the sunrise this morning.

He had passed out long before that, on the couch, not even able to make it to his own bed. He was vaguely aware of his mother draping him in a dozen blankets, but he sunk into the warmth, feeling like he was five and stuck home with the flu again. He couldn’t decide if he liked that feeling or not. He was normally so independent, hating it when others tried to care for him, but right now, he felt too sluggish to really care. Every bone in his body hurt, and his head was still trying to process it all.

His mother must’ve sensed his discomfort, because she let him be, let him sleep with the tv playing lightly in the background while the sun rose outside his window.

He was jolted awake a few hours after sunrise, his phone vibrating on the floor next to him. He lifted his cheek from the pillow groggily and pressed the green button, holding the phone to his ear.

“Kuroo?” Kuroo blinked.

“Kenma? Everything okay?” There was a long silence.

“...Do you want to level up?” It took Kuroo much longer than he’d care to admit to process the question, even glancing at the time to see it was 11 in the morning. When he did process the meaning of Kenma’s words, he realized Kenma hadn’t asked that in years, not since they were chubby little kids and Kuroo had a knack for being as obnoxious as possible. Kuroo really wanted to go back to bed, if he was being honest, but Kenma’s low breath was still on the other line and he realized, there was much more to the question than a simple game of volleyball.

“Yeah. Our usual spot?”

“Sure.”

“I’ll see you in 15. Oh and Kenma?”

“Yes?”

“I don’t care what time of the day it is, you wanna practice with me, you call, you hear? I don’t care what time it is, I’ll probably need to too.” There was a succinct moment of silence, filled only with the thumping of Kuroo’s heart and the dull headache that lingered in the back of his head.

“Okay.” 

…

Saeko broke the rules. She broke the policies outlined by the hospital staff about visiting restrictions, and she broke the rules of the waiting game for Nishinoya. It wasn’t long past lunchtime and her parents broke away from Tanaka’s bedside for a quick lunch. Saeko took that opportunity to break the remainder of the Karasuno into his room. Noya had been the first in line, with Kiyoko and Suga behind him, and Daichi hanging back.

When the hall was clear, Saeko pushed Noya down the hall and towards his door and with a quick glance over her shoulder, shoved Noya into the room.

“Tanaka!” Noya cried out, leaping into his arms, crushing him in a hug. Tanaka grunted in pain, but tossed his arms around his brother and hugged back. “You sonofabitch! You had me really worried!”

“It’s nice to know you care.” Tanaka rasped out, slapping his back.

“I’m sorry.” Noya mumbled into his shoulder. “I should have fought harder, dug more. Maybe you would have gotten out earlier, maybe you would have been okay.”

“Hey. Noya, I’m fine. And you couldn’t have gotten me out. There was no way. But it’s all good now and-” Tanaka paused, meeting Kiyoko’s gaze from the doorway.

“Kiyoko,” He whispered, letting go of Noya. “Are you okay? Are you hurt?” Kiyoko, held back a relieving sob as she approached him, and Noya stood back, watching as his best friend reached out for her hand.

“Wait a min-” Noya was cut off as Kiyoko took Tanaka’s hand and while she tried to remain reserved and stiff, Tanaka pulled himself up and tugged her towards him in a gentle hug, sighing contently in her arms. Noya’s jaw dropped to the floor.

“You’re the one in a hospital bed.” She whispered, pressing her lips to his forehead, both of them too captivated by their reunion to notice Noya sputtering like an idiot next to them. Tanaka lifted his hand to brush his fingers against the bandage on her temple.

“You did get hurt.” His gaze casted downward as if he blamed himself. Kiyoko smiled softly, pressing her forehead against his.

“You scared me.” Tanaka cracked a slight grin.

“I don’t know why. I can’t die. I have to marry you one day after all.” His grin widened, but his attention was turned to Noya.

“WHAT THE HELL?! RYUU WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL ME?!” Kiyoko and him blushed, pulling away.

“...Are you mad?” Tanaka cringed, waiting for Noya to explode.

“Are you kidding?! This is the best fucking thing to ever happen! I’m gonna be the best man at the wedding! Get ready for the bachelor party of your life!” Noya stuck his fist in the air before jumping into their arms, laughing.

“Thank you guys.” Tanaka rasped out, a strained breath making its way up his throat and escaping his trembling lips. Kiyoko never really let go, but she did pull away, tilting her head, and finding herself taking in his exhausted expression.

“For what?” Noya asked, hugging him tighter, despite his chest heaving for air. Tanaka turned his head away from them, averting his gaze and blinking back tears. It would have been too hard to explain anyway. But he did find himself thinking about it again, the way he pictured their faces in the darkness, heard Noya’s laugh in the thick silence, felt Kiyoko’s warm hand in the cold, empty, nothing. 

“Nothing.” He said shortly, offering a tired smile that faded quickly. Kiyoko pulled Nota back, giving him room to breathe, and sighed softly, taking residence in the seat next to the hospital bed. She squeezed his hand and he desperately tried to squeeze back, but there was no strength in the action. They fell silent, well, Tanaka and Kiyoko fell silent. Noya rambled on about every member of the team, talking about how Hinata finally kissed Kageyama, Bokuto and Akaashi were found practically dangling from the building, and Suga trapped in the elevator. 

“Tanaka?” Noya’s head whipped around, his mouth promptly slamming shut. Tanaka wearily turned his head, squinting at the door frame, Daichi half hiding behind it

“Yo, Daichi!” He was cut off by a rough cough, before swallowing and nodding for him to come in. Despite it, Daichi stayed in his place. “I’m a little roughed up, but I’ll be back to slamming those spikes in no time.” Daichi nodded, shrinking back into his shoulders. Noya’s head spun back and forth between them, scrambling for words, but found that he barely knew where to begin.

“...what’s going on?” Tanaka asked, catching on to the strange exchange of glances. Kiyoko squeezed his hand a little tighter, but it didn’t fill him with warmth, but instead a sense of dread.

“Nothing! Everything’s fine!” Noya was quick to jump on the question, shooting Daichi a quick shake of his head.

“No. Tell me.” Daichi gulped and stepped inside the room, still putting a noticeable amount of distance between Tanaka and him.

“It’s my fault. My fault that you were trapped under there. Noya tried to pull you out, and I stopped him. There was a gas leak and I-”

“Is Noya okay?” Noya glanced at him, eyebrows furrowed.

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.” Tanaka shrugged.

“Then that’s all I care about. And anyway, Noya couldn’t pull me out. It took an entire fire truck to lift the concrete that had me pinned. I love you bro, but even you don’t have that kind of power.” Noya wiped the tears from his eyes, launching himself into Tanaka’s arms again, who grunted in response.

“B-b-but I-”

“Daichi. Stop. I’ll be okay. And you saved who you could. I wouldn’t have forgiven you if you had left Noya in there. He’s kind of dense sometimes.” Daichi chuckled at this and stepped forward with a slight nod of his head.

“You guys better get out of here. The doctors will be pissed if all of you are hanging around.” 

…

Bokuto sat on the front step, tying the laces of his shoes, his parents watching carefully from the kitchen window. He said he was going for a walk, just like he had done a million times before, but his parents eyes bore holes into his back, as if they were afraid it would be the last they would see of him. He really wanted to go for a run, but the stitches in his side prevented him from that. 

He waved them goodbye quickly, disappearing down the street, until he rounded the corner, and passed the entrance of the park a few blocks from his neighborhood. Akaashi was already there waiting for him.

"Akaaaaashi!" He waved, jogging up to him. Akaashi shook his head, scrambling to reach him first, knowing full well Bokuto was not supposed to be running.

"Hello Bokuto-san."

"Akaashi! I missed you!" He whispered clasping Akaashi's face between his hands. Akaashi smiled the best he could against his squished cheeks, and threaded his arms around Bokuto's neck. 

"We saw each other yesterday."

"I know, but it's lonely without you. And..." He trailed off, chewing on his lip as he lost himself in thought.

"And what?"

"It's like... I get anxious when I'm away from you. It's probably pathetic, I know, but I'm alone for a few hours and all I can think about... is how I had no idea where you were, or what if something happened and I-"

"Look at me Koutarou. It's okay. I had these dreams last night that instead of reching me- y-you fell through. They were awful. I think it's goingg to take some time before things return to normal." Akaashi reached out for his hand, lacing their fingers.

"But I'm right here Koutarou. You found me."

…

Daichi walked out of the hospital sliding glass doors, Suga’s hand clasped in his. He stood underneath the shelter's concrete roof at the hospital drop off center, waiting for his parents to pick him and Suga up and bring them home. He looked around, taking in the strange way the buildings resembled the past and his future all at the same time, and while the earth wasn’t shaking anymore, he could still feel the tremble beneath his feet of another kind. He squeezed Suga’s hand tighter, and looked up at the dark skies looming above. He stepped out from under the shelter to get a better look at the sun missing from its place and smiled softly as the sky opened up and began to cry.

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so so so much for reading! This story really was a roller-coaster ride for me! I hoped you enjoyed.
> 
> I thought about doing a part two, kind of with the ptsd and the healing, and obviously lots of cute ships, so if you want me to do that, let me know!Until next time,
> 
> -Daisy

**Author's Note:**

> Can ya'll tell I absolutely love Kiyoko and Tanaka? There is so much that's about to happen, but a happy ending is on the way, of course you have to make it through some hard core angst. 
> 
> Oh and the Jesus hotline? Not made up, that's what happens when you stick me and a bunch of friends in a hotel in another country after pulling an all nighter. 
> 
> Come find me on Tumblr to chat! I'm always up for a good scream fest about Kagehina or Bokuaka
> 
> Until next time,  
> -Daisy


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